


Flight from Atlantis

by Keolah



Category: Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001), Dragon Age, Geneforge, Greek and Roman Mythology, Half-Life, Mass Effect, Planescape, The Bible, Werewolf: The Apocalypse
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Crossover, Demons, Dimension Travel, Draenei, Drama, Implied Character Death, Lesbian Character, Minor Character Death, Multi, Multiple Crossovers, Tieflings, Time Travel, Too Many Crossovers, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-08-06
Updated: 2012-08-15
Packaged: 2017-11-13 08:59:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 32,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/501743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Keolah/pseuds/Keolah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Atlantis had subjugated much of the world with an extensive portal network. But one day, something goes horribly wrong, and every portal in the world opens up at once, each of them pointing to a different point in space and time. A small group of people escapes from Atlantis, and sets out on an adventure across their shattered world. They are joined along the way by eclectic individuals from across the universe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Fall of Atlantis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter involves Atlantis and Dragon Age.

"Pandora! We need more juice to the system. We've added another six portals to the network." 

"I'll see what I can do," Pandora replied, not looking up from her work. 

Maintaining the Atlantean portal network was a challenging job, and required a lot of concentration, but it was her pride and joy. Pandora's fingers flicked along the glowing crystals, lighting up several of them and rerouting energy into the portal network. 

"At the current rate of growth, we'll need three new nodes by the end of this cycle," Pandora said. She despaired at having to draw so much power from the Heart of Atlantis, but she was constantly finding new ways to refine her technology. 

There came a chuckling sound from a woman behind her. "You work too hard, Pandora." 

"There's a lot of work to be done, Serriya." 

"I finally managed to get a little time off duty, and I find you holed up here working your fingers off, as usual," Serriya replied. "Come on, love, let's go out and get something to eat. Somebody else can take up the slack in the meantime." 

"But--" 

"You're not even supposed to be working right now," Serriya pointed out. "I looked up your schedule. You had the day off today, and came in to work anyway." 

"Well, I wanted to make sure that these novices didn't get anything wrong," Pandora said defensively. This project was her baby, after all. She didn't like to leave it in anyone else's hands. 

"They'll never learn if you don't let them do their jobs now and then." 

Pandora sighed. "Alright, alright. I suppose you're right. Let me just finish up what I'm doing real quick." 

Pandora finished her work, and stood up, clasping the crystal around her neck. "Adina, you're in charge while I'm gone." She turned around and smiled at Serriya, and followed the other woman out of the building. How busy had she really been? She was starving, and hadn't even realized it. She knew she hadn't had lunch yet. Had she even eaten breakfast? 

Blinking up into the sun, she realized that she'd been spending far too much time staring at crystals lately. Serriya had a point. 

Laughing softly, Serriya said, "You'd think you haven't seen the sun in days, my dear. And I've been away conquering the world for so long that I feared you'd forgotten what I even looked like." 

"Never," Pandora assured her, gazing at Serriya. "But your hair is cut shorter than it was when I last saw you." 

Serriya's silver hair hardly came down to her chin now, rather than streaming like a waterfall all the way down to her waist as it had been before. Her brown skin remained unmarred by any scars. 

"Long hair is inconvenient in war," Serriya said, rubbing her neck. "I had a barbarian grab my hair once and almost snap my spine. Not good. So I decided it would be best to cut it off." 

"That bastard," Pandora said, putting an arm around Serriya's waist. "I hope he got what was coming to him." 

"I ran him through with my lightblade." 

Pandora held the other close. "Good. Good. You know I hate violence, but I hate the thought of you getting hurt even more." 

"I'm fine, love," Serriya assured her. "But just think. Soon, all the world will be united in peace and prosperity under the rule of Atlantis, and none of this will be necessary anymore." 

Pandora laughed softly. "You're such a dreamer. But then, so am I. That's what I love about you." 

The two of them headed down to a restaurant by the water to share a midday meal. It was a beautiful day, and they took a table situated out on a patio looking over the ocean. 

They were quiet for a time as they ate. Neither of them wanted to go into detail about their respective jobs at the moment. Pandora didn't want to hear about killing, and Serriya wouldn't want to hear about power regulation, teleportation attunement, and crystal matrices. Instead, they discussed the weather, the delicious fish they were eating, and what Serriya had been seeing in far-off lands. 

"They're primitives, all of them," Serriya said. "Barbarians. The world will enter a new age of glory once Atlantis rules over everyone." 

Pandora kept her thoughts quiet on the matter. She doubted that the Heart of Atlantis would be able to handle being strained that far. It was already showing signs of stress. How much more could it take before something catastrophic happened? But it was her job to prevent that from happening, and she would find a way to do it, one way or another. 

"But it hasn't been all bad," Serriya went on. "I've seen mountains, and forests, deserts, jungles. And you wouldn't believe some of the animals I've seen out there. I'm sure you'd love them." 

"Like what?" Pandora asked, perking up with interest. 

"I saw an animal with the tail of a beaver and the bill of a duck," Serriya said. 

"You're kidding me." 

"I'm serious. I'll see if I can catch one and bring it back for you if I ever get sent back there. They've been sending me all over the place. That land is so far away that it's night there when it's day here." 

Pandora wasn't listening anymore. Something felt inexplicably wrong somehow. She put her hand on the crystal around her neck. It almost seemed to be vibrating. 

"I need to get back," Pandora said, standing up suddenly, any thoughts of her half-eaten meal forgotten. 

"What's wrong?" Serriya wondered, also standing. 

"I don't know." Pandora left the restaurant quickly, followed by Serriya. "It might be nothing. But I'm not going to take the chance." 

Serriya sighed longsufferingly and went along after her patiently as they returned to the control center beneath the Heart of Atlantis. The vibration was stronger here. The giant crystal hovering over the city was fluctuating in ways it really should not be. Pandora doubted that anyone else would notice it, though. She'd spent so much time with it that she was sensitive to every tiny shift in the energy flows. 

Adina looked up at her with alarm. "Pandora? Is something wrong?" 

"Haven't you noticed it?" Pandora said, hurrying over to the control panels. 

Adina shook her head, and Pandora sighed in frustration. Perhaps Serriya was right. She should have been teaching them to do this job better, rather than doing everything herself. 

"The energy flow from the Heart of Atlantis is unstable. Compensating..." 

The giant portal in the central chamber seemed to shudder. This wasn't working! What in the name of all the gods had these monkeys done to screw this up? This was her baby! Her _baby_! 

A humming sound thrummed through the area, slowly building in pitch and volume. A surge of energy rushed along the portal ring. The balance was horribly, horribly off. Frantically, Pandora tried to salvage the situation. "Compensating. Compensating..." 

_Crack!_ The portal ring spun violently, glowing vibrant blue and letting off waves of energy in all directions. The spinning grew faster and faster, and a swirling portal opened up inside the ring. But it wasn't deep purple like a normal portal. It was red and orange like flame. 

"What the..." Serriya breathed, taking a step back away from the portal. "Pandora?" 

"Compensating!" Pandora shouted in a panic. 

The energy was all wrong, and it was out of control. She had no idea where this portal had just opened up to. Worse, she was getting readings all over the charts. _Every_ portal in the network had just opened up simultaneously. 

"Oh hell," Pandora uttered. 

Serriya pulled out her lightblade, activating it and letting forth the shimmering purple energy beam. "If you, of all people, are swearing, this must be bad." 

Something was emerging from the blazing red portal. A human-like creature, but it wasn't human. It was misshapen, deformed, mutated in some unnatural way. Its skin looked diseased, and it peered around the room with bloodshot eyes as if wondering where it was. 

Maybe it wouldn't be aggressive. Looks could be deceiving, after all. Just because something is ugly doesn't necessarily mean it's evil, right? The humanoid threw back its head, bearing its teeth and howled, then brandished its metal sword, charging straight toward Serriya. Pandora's hopes for a peaceful encounter were dashed. 

Serriya swiftly sidestepped the creature's attack, and smoothly gutted it with one slash of her lightblade. Black blood spilled out onto the floor, and the creature collapsed in a heap. 

"You didn't have to kill it!" Pandora protested. 

"In case you didn't notice, it _attacked_ me." 

"It was probably just confused about winding up somewhere unfamiliar!" 

"It was a hostile barbarian," Serriya said firmly. "It's my job to _kill_ those sorts of people, even if they _are_ particularly ugly ones. I don't have the time or desire to sort out the ones who are stupid enough to attack me, but might be amenable to reason after they realize I can kick their asses." 

Pandora opened her mouth for another protest, but her argument was cut short by another being emerging from the portal. This one appeared to be an enormous spider of some sort, hissing and skittering into the room. 

Oh, this wasn't good. She had to find a way to stabilize the portal network, or at least _shut it down_ and stop things from coming through. If this was happening here, what might be happening elsewhere around the world? Were monsters coming through everywhere else, too? 

"Someone call in my squad!" Serriya shouted toward the workers as she moved to engage the spider. One of them nodded and hurried over to the comm. 

Pandora stared at the readings the computer was giving her. She'd never seen anything like this before. Where were these portals connecting to? Nowhere on this world. If these numbers could be believed, this portal connected to another time and place entirely. How was this possible? This didn't even make sense! 

She tried to stay calm, focusing on her work as best as she could. Serriya's comrades came in to hold off the monsters coming through the portal. Another humanoid had come through, this one was much larger than the last. It was almost as broad as it was tall, and had huge horns curving out from its head. The creature grabbed onto one of Serriya's soldiers and threw him across the room. The man's broken body struck the panel next to Pandora, sending sparks flying in all directions. 

"Karden!" Serriya yelled. 

Pandora didn't dare look down, feeling sick to her stomach. She had to concentrate. No one else was going to fix this. All the portals were open, she saw, and all of them going to different places. Different worlds. Different times. 

Adina came over and started trying to heal Karden with her crystal. "He's dead!" she shrieked. 

Pandora thought the best way to shut down the portals would be to forcefully cut off the power coming out from the Heart of Atlantis somehow. But her panel had been damaged when Karden was thrown against it. Things weren't responding like they should be. She'd have to try to make some repairs quickly first, or reroute around the damaged areas. 

"We're getting reports in from everywhere," said Adina. "Monsters are attacking all over the place. Lots of places aren't responding at all anymore." 

"More of these things?" Serriya asked during a lull in the fighting, finally getting a chance to pull on the helmet her squad her brought her. It was probably fortunate that she was paranoid enough to always go around armed and wearing her usual light armor. 

"It doesn't sound like it. There's descriptions of all sorts of different things." 

"The portals are all connected to different places," Pandora put in. "Different _worlds_." 

"Why is this happening?" Adina wondered. 

"I wish I knew!" Pandora cried. 

Adina's eyes widened in shock. Pandora could understand that. Up until now, she was always the one who knew everything. The one who always had all the answers. Now, she didn't even know how to turn this thing _off_! 

* * *

Scregor strode through the tunnel, heavy armor stomping against the floor of the Deep Roads. Stealth was the least of his concerns. He swung his heavy axe, cleaving another genlock in half. The darkspawn were on the move. Where were they going? This was most unusual, especially without a Blight going on. 

If there was some sort of issue with the darkspawn, as a Grey Warden, it was his duty to find out what was going on and put a stop to it. And if they were to be a threat to Orzammar, it was his duty to protect the city of his birth or die trying. He couldn't reclaim the ancient dwarven realm from the darkspawn by himself, but he'd do whatever he could to make sure the dwarves didn't lose what little they had left. 

Scregor observed the direction the darkspawn were heading, and followed after them, striking down any of them within immediate reach. He even thought he heard an ogre rumble through this way somewhere ahead of him. 

He made his way down the old dwarven-built corridor, his booted feet squishing against the slime of darkspawn corruption. Then, up ahead, he spotted light in the darkness, an eerie reddish glow playing against the stone walls. At first he thought it was fire, and that something was burning, but as he approached, he realized that this was no fire. 

A swirling disc of red-orange light hovered in the air in the corridor. The last group of darkspawn ahead of him stepped into the magical eddy and vanished, like pebbles disappearing into a pool of molten lava. 

Scregor stopped and stared for a moment, frowning. Darkspawn weren't normally pointlessly suicidal. He didn't know a lot about magic, but he had to think that this must be some sort of magical doorway to another place. Oh, now that could be bad. That could be really bad. If darkspawn could suddenly appear absolutely anywhere? That was the sort of thought to fuel nightmares. He had to put a stop to this. 

As dangerous as it might be, he had to find out where this portal went to. He braced himself against the unknown and high potential that he would have to fight more darkspawn on the far side, and stepped into it. It was a peculiar sensation, for all that it looked like fire, all he felt was a strange tingling, and then his vision blurred with a dizzy rush for a few moments before it cleared again and he stepped out... someplace else. 

It was a building, like noplace he had ever seen. Dark-skinned humans with pale whitish hair surrounded him, bearing strange weapons, like blades made of pure energy. They were standing over several darkspawn corpses, so they'd clearly been holding their own up until this point, but for how much longer? Yet, the construction of the room itself seemed like nothing he'd ever seen humans build. There were crystals, and everything was elegant and smooth, almost elvish in design. At first he'd thought it might have been Tevinter, but no, this was too strange even for there. Where _was_ he? 

That was a concern for another time, however. The humans were raising their weapons against him. Oh, crap, they must take him for another darkspawn. Quickly, he put aside his axe, raised his hands, and said, "Hold on! I'm not a darkspawn!" 

He realized after he said it that if they were such strange and foreign people as they appeared to be, they might not even understand him at all. But they seemed to relax a little and lower their weapons a bit. 

"Who are you?" asked one of them. Something seemed strange about the words at first, but the blue crystal she was wearing around her neck flickered for a moment as she spoke, and he realized that he could understand her. She was wielding a blade of violet light and wearing slightly more elaborate armor than the others. He took her for their leader. 

"I'm Scregor Aeducan, and I'm a Grey Warden. You seem to be having a bit of a problem with darkspawn? I saw them coming through this... swirly red thing, and came to see what was up." 

"I am Serriya, a captain of Atlantis. You very nearly got yourself killed." 

Scregor Aeducan snorted derisively. "That's always a risk in this line of work." 

"We can probably handle this ourselves, but if you want to help, you're more than welcome to," Serriya said, looking at him dismissively. 

Scregor snorted softly. Did these people even realize what darkspawn _were_? Scregor doubted it, especially as he had never even heard of this "Atlantis". Where in Thedas _was_ he? Was he even still in Thedas at all? 

Another group of darkspawn came through behind Scregor, and he hefted his axe, always ready to fight. The humans weren't bad at fighting either, and their lightblades seemed to cut through flesh like soft butter. One genlock broke from the group, trying to stab one of the unarmed human workers with its dagger. Scregor intercepted it, beheading it with one swing of his axe. It fell at an angle, gurgling and spurting black blood all over one of the crystal-covered panels. 

"Ugh!" the woman said, shrinking back. She looked like she was going to be sick. She had been working at that panel until just a moment ago. 

Scregor glanced over to make sure there were no more darkspawn around. The human warriors had taken care of them, though. He warned her, "Don't touch it. Their blood is tainted." 

"We're going to be facing worse than a little taint if I can't get the portal closed," she said, sighing. "But thanks for the help, regardless. My name is Pandora." 

The blood was starting to sink in and discolor the crystals. That couldn't be a good sign. The blue crystals that had come into contact with the blood were starting to turn a distressing shade of purple. Scregor really didn't know what the crystals were for, but from the woman's words, they seemed to have something to do with the portal. This could be bad. Anything involving the darkspawn and the taint could be bad. 

A crystal on the far side of the room lit up, projecting an the image into the air above it of a pale-skinned human woman with reddish-orange hair, wearing strange armor. She looked around in confusion and muttered, "How do you work this? Is this thing on?" 

Pandora went over to it and replied, "I'm reading you. Who is this?" 

"I'm Commander Shepard. I just took out a bunch of husks that had come through this... whatever this is. Where am I, anyway?" 

"We're grateful for your assistance," Pandora said. "As for where... that's a bit complicated. I don't have the time to explain right now, though. There are portals open all over this world, and monsters rampaging through many of them. I don't know if there's heroes like you near all of them to stop them, though." 

"Well, the husks should be taken care of, at least," Commander Shepard replied. "We'll see what we can do to help." 

"Why?" Serriya put in suddenly. 

"Huh?" Commander Shepard wondered. 

"Why are you going out of your way to help us? I could ask this of you, Scregor, too. This isn't your home. You have no stake in what happens here. You're from somewhere else entirely. You're from some other world. You could just step back through the portal and go home. Why risk yourselves to help us?" 

"Because..." Commander Shepard replied with a hard expression. "That's what I _do_." She turned and walked off. 

Serriya stared for several long seconds before saying quietly, "I do not understand." 

Scregor snorted in amusement, and said, "You don't, huh? How about I explain it to you, then?" 

"Do so," Serriya said. 

"It's not always about just protecting yourself, or the duty to protect your own. Honor often demands protecting complete strangers, too. That's what being a hero is all about. You don't just fight for your own survival. You fight because it's the right thing to do. You fight to defend the weak and the helpless. You fight for the sake of truth and justice. No fear. No retreat. No compromise. Honor demands nothing less than everything you are capable of giving sometimes, and sometimes it demands even more than that. Sometimes it demands that you lay down your life for a stranger, for the sake of giving hope to the future for all beings, everywhere." 

Serriya stared at him incredulously for a minute after he finished his speech. "You really believe that, don't you," she said quietly. 

"With my heart and soul, until the Stone takes me." 

Serriya shook her head and muttered, "Foolish. Foolish idealism." But Pandora caught a note of doubt in her tone. 

"Say what you will," Scregor said, turning back to the portal as it began to ripple again. "We've got more darkspawn to kill." 

Pandora went back to work on a panel that wasn't tainted by darkspawn blood as Scregor and the Atlanteans dispatched another group of darkspawn. Scregor wondered how long they could hold out. He wasn't concerned about himself. He would fight until he dropped dead. That was his duty. 

"Oh, this isn't good," Pandora said, her fingers practically flying over the arrangement of crystals. "This isn't good at all. From my readings, the situation around the world is steadily getting worse. Some of the portals have actually been destroyed, which only serves to further destabilize the network, even if it does prevent anything else from coming through." 

There was a rumbling sound, and the portal before them shook and shuddered. He didn't understand half of what Pandora was saying, but that definitely was not a good sign, by any stretch of the imagination. The crystal panels on the far side of the room were popping and fizzling, and one smaller crystal exploded, sending tiny shards flying. 

"Pandora!" Serriya called. "We need to get out of here." 

"I can still fix this!" Pandora insisted. 

"Look around you!" Serriya said. "This place is a mess, and things are only getting worse. We already sent Adina and the others away. The crystals are starting to _explode_." 

"I'll cover your retreat. I'll fight the darkspawn until the Stone takes me," Scregor said, gripping his axe firmly and facing the portal. He wasn't going to allow anything else to come out of it. 

"That's not necessary," Serriya said. "Come with us." 

"I'm a Grey Warden. It's what I do." 

"Are you so eager to throw your life away? Either go back to your own home through the portal, or come with us! You'd be more help to us alive than dead!" 

He was a Grey Warden. His duty was to fight darkspawn. With the Blight on his own world over with, his purpose there was done with. There was nothing there he wanted to go back to. Nothing but painful memories. But here? He might actually be able to do some good here. This world really seemed to be in trouble. It might not just be darkspawn, but his own sense of honor could not refuse to give aid where he could in a time of crisis. 

Finally, he nodded sharply. "Fine. I'll go with you. I'll help you however I can." 

"I'm glad to hear that." Serriya grabbed Pandora's arm and tried to pull her away. "Come on. Time to go." 

"I've got to fix this!" Pandora said. 

"You won't be able to fix anything if you're dead. Let's go, love. Please." 

Pandora sighed and reluctantly allowed herself to be dragged away, staring back at the place as though it were a precious baby as she went. The control room was on fire, and the portal ring was cracking and smoldering. Crystals were dying with small pops, sending off shards and smoke. It was an unmitigated disaster the likes of which even Scregor could tell was very, very bad. 

"Please tell me that this is just a horrible nightmare," Pandora murmured. "Tell me that I'm going to wake up, and none of this will have ever happened." 

"I'm sorry, my dear," Serriya said. "But I'm afraid I can't tell you that." 

Outside in the surface air, Scregor looked up and saw an enormous crystal floating in the air above the building that they had just come out of. That had to be the biggest chunk of lyrium that he had ever seen. Was it normally supposed to be blue? Right now, it was flickering and pulsating wildly, letting off flashes of different colors. 

The humans in the city were panicking, staring up at the crystal themselves worriedly, and scattering frantically in all directions. Even they could tell that something was clearly wrong. 

"Let's see if there are any Ketaks left," Serriya said. 

"Why?" Pandora wondered glumly. "Where are we going? What do we hope to do?" 

"Don't give up hope yet," Serriya said. "I don't know where we can go or where we can do, but we've got to do _something_. I'm not ready to give up fighting yet." 

Scregor, along with the two of them, and several other humans, headed out to the airfield where a number of strange, fish-shaped vehicles were parked. There were marks on the ground where several others might have been kept until recently. There was one there that was much larger than the others, about the size of some of the sailing vessels that Scregor had seen. 

"Good, there's still an Ar'ketak here," Serriya said, looking at the big one. "That will probably be our best bet." 

As they approached the Ar'ketak, some other humans intercepted them. "Take us with you! We can help!" 

"Like you helped while I was out eating lunch with Serriya, Adina..." Pandora muttered. 

Adina lowered her eyes. "Look, I'm sorry. Blame me for it all if you want. It doesn't really matter anymore, does it?" 

"Forget about it," Pandora said. "Come on. I'm not about to leave you to die for it." 

They all climbed into the Ar'ketak, and Serriya stepped into a small room at the back of the ship and took the controls. Scregor almost lost his footing as the vessel lifted into the air. By the ancestors, what sorcery was this!? He'd expected some sort of sailing ship, even if he'd thought it strange that the vessel wasn't being kept in the water. But no, instead, this was some sort of airship. 

Scregor stumbled toward the nearest doorway heading down into the hold, gripping the doorframe for dear life when he reached it. He didn't want to think what would happen if he went tumbling off the side. Dwarves weren't meant to fly! 

As Scregor settled himself into the hold where he could pretend that this was just a sea vessel, he let out a heavy breath. The idea of being trapped in this strange place didn't bother him quite as much as he might have expected it would. Nobody here knew him or expected anything of him. Here, he could just be Scregor, and not Prince Scregor, or Grey Warden Scregor, or Paragon Scregor, or any of that. 

At least until he saved some other land from a terrible disaster and they wanted to make him a hero again. But he'd deal with that if it happened. Right now, he was more concerned with helping and saving what he could. 

* * *

As the Ar'ketak bore them away from the island that had once been their home, Pandora couldn't help but look back. The Heart of Atlantis glimmered and pulsed in the light of the setting sun. Had they really been fighting off the darkspawn for hours while Pandora tried and failed to fix everything? 

Pandora watched, heart-wrenchingly, as the beautiful island of Atlantis grew smaller in the widening distance between it and them. This was all her fault, she thought. It was her job to prevent a disaster like this. And she had failed. She had so very, utterly failed. 

Then suddenly, a crack of blinding light surged in the distance. What happened? Atlantis... had the Heart of Atlantis just exploded? Pandora didn't know what else it could have been, and she realized with horror that the light had gone out. She clenched her eyes shut and turned away, curling up inside the Ar'ketak. 

In a single day and night of misfortune, Atlantis sank beneath the waves.


	2. Demons and Heroes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter involves World of Warcraft.

Faruni looked down at the valley. The demons were moving. Where were they going? They were pouring out of this place with some dark purpose, she just knew it. 

"Faruni? Are we going to get to kill something?" asked Dameon. "You've just been watching those demons for five minutes!" 

"Be patient," Faruni said, forcing her voice to remain even. It would be unbecoming to snap at him in anger, or impatiently admonish him to be patient. 

Why, oh why, had Honor Hold asked a draenei paladin like her to work with a _warlock_ of all things? It was almost insulting, but she had gone along with it reluctantly. 

"My Demon Slaying Doohickey Extreme is ready for testing!" said Moxie excitedly. 

And him, Faruni just had to quietly sigh at. The gnome meant well, at least. She just could not shake the feeling that her companions were some test of her patience and resolve, however. 

While she'd watched, the majority of the demons in the vicinity had vanished. She could not figure out where they might have gone. What was the Burning Legion up to? Faruni had a horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach, wondering if they'd managed to open a portal to someplace else to invade. Wasn't what they'd already done to her own former home bad enough? 

"Come," Faruni said to Dameon and Moxie. "We must investigate. Be on your guard." 

The paladin led the way down into the cracked and charred valley. Hellfire Peninsula was not a pleasant place in general, but the areas infested by demons tended to be even worse than usual, if such was even possible. 

Then, she felt the ground shake for a moment, and an unearthly roar pierced the air. Her blood ran cold. She recognized that sound. Anyone who spent even an hour in Hellfire Peninsula would. 

"Fel Reaver," she said quietly. "Take cover." 

The three of them hid away in a nook behind a cluster of large, fiery orange rocks. Even the human and gnome were sensible enough not to try to tackle with a Fel Reaver. They quietly sat by and watched as the ground shook, and a monstrosity like something out of her worst nightmares stomped through where they'd just been standing moments before. As tall as a tower, a hulk of twisted, black metal, belching sickly green smoke from the pipes jutting out from its back. With each step of its demonic legs, the ground trembled as though the very world itself were afraid of it. 

The Fel Reaver let out another metallic roar, deafeningly loud, almost directly on top of them. Faruni's heart pounded. Fel Reavers were never very observant or intelligent machines, always patrolling in the same path and slaying any enemies of the Burning Legion that stood in their way. They were easy enough to avoid if one were cautious, generally. But every time one came near, she always feared that this time, this time it would spot her and crush her beneath its enormous, black foot. 

But the Fel Reaver moved on, stomping off to continue on its patrol, never realizing that the three of them were there, hiding just out of sight. Once it was safely away again, she breathed more easily. 

"Let us go," Faruni said. 

They left their cover and went in the direction that the demons had been moving before. There were still a handful of demons in the valley, but only minor sorts, nothing particularly dangerous to their group. It was as though the Burning Legion had left behind only a token guard to protect this area, or perhaps just that these were stragglers that hadn't noticed that their cohorts had already left. 

"Where did all the demons go?" Dameon wondered. 

"I would like to know the answer to that question myself," Faruni said. 

A little ways further on, they came upon a swirling portal, red as flame, suspended in the air. That could not be a good sign. Where might this lead? Nevertheless, it was a far too dangerous prospect to investigate an unknown portal with a large number of demons on the other side. They should report back to Honor Hold and tell them what happened. They would want to know about this. 

"A portal?" Dameon said. "Let's see where it goes." He stepped up toward the whirling red disc. 

"Dameon!" Faruni tried to warn him, but he'd already stepped through. 

"Good idea!" Moxie said brightly, following right after him. 

"No! Bad idea!" Faruni shouted. But they were gone, both of them, through the mysterious portal. She sighed heavily. "The naaru would weep for the foolishness I must endure." 

She briefly considered turning around and going back to Honor Hold right now and telling them that, regretfully, her companions were lost, but that would be dishonest and dishonorable. As foolish as it might be, they had decided to investigate the portal, and they would stand a much better chance of success if she were with them. Whether she liked it or not, she knew where her duty lay. 

Faruni took a deep breath and stepped into the fiery red portal, and felt the usual sensation of disorientation before it deposited her on the other side. Dameon and Moxie were there, standing admist the scene of a massacre. There were human bodies strewn about the floor of a building of no design she had ever seen, mangled, bloody, mutilated. 

"What is this place?" Dameon said. 

"You are very fortunate that there are no demons still inside the building," Faruni told him. 

"The bodies are human," Dameon said. "But humans don't make buildings like this." 

"Yes, it looks almost like something my own people would have used," Faruni said. "But there are clear differences." 

She cautious stepped over to the doorway and peered outside. The demons had scattered off in all directions, although a cluster of some particularly dangerous ones was still situated nearby. Thankfully, they weren't paying attention to the portal building at the moment. 

"This... is not Outland," Dameon said, looking out the door beside her and staring up at the blue sky. Clear blue, and not the ether-streaked starscape that they had just come out from. 

"No. It's not," Faruni agreed. 

"Great! Demons!" Moxie said excitedly, pulling out his contraption. "Time to test out my Demon Slaying Doohickey Extreme!" 

"Moxie!" Faruni cried as the gnome went charging off toward the group of demons. There was a Dreadlord over there among them! 

The Dreadlord looked down at the little gnome scrambling toward him with a bizarre device on his back, and quirked his lips into a terrible grin. Moxie went right up to his hooves, the gizmo sputtering and giving off sparks. 

"What is this?" the Dreadlord roared. "Foolish mortals come to challenge the might of the Burning Legion?" 

"Face the might of my--" Moxie began, and then his contraption let off a gasp of smoke before exploding, flattening him against the ground. 

The Dreadlord laughed, a sinister menacing rumble, and lifted one hoof to stomp the gnome flat. Faruni drew her blade and called upon the Holy Light in attempt to aid her companion, but she was too slow. In but a moment, the gnome was nothing more than a smear in the dirt. 

"Back to the Twisting Nether with you, demon!" Faruni growled. 

"And an exiled eredar, as well?" the Dreadlord said. "Come, join your brethren. You belong with the Burning Legion." 

"I am no eredar! I am a draenei! And I would sooner die than join you!" 

"Faruni, hold the others off of me," Dameon said. "I'm going to try to control him." 

"Are you _insane_?" Faruni replied. "That is no mere imp! That is a _Dreadlord_!" 

"Trust me, I know what I'm doing," Dameon assured her, which did not assure her in the least. 

The Dreadlord laughed as the warlock came up to him and started working his magic. Faruni obligingly let him try, at least, and took down the other demons nearby with blade and holy magic. The Dreadlord stood by, not attacking yet, watching the foolish warlock more in amusement than any apparent feeling of being threatened. He clearly didn't care what happened to his subordinates, either. 

"He's... he's too strong!" Dameon said in a strained voice. 

"I _told_ you that!" 

Again, the Dreadlord laughed. "You think you can command me, fool? You want this power for yourself? Of course you do. But it is I who will command _you_. Both of you should serve the Burning Legion." 

"I will do nothing of the sort!" Faruni cried, shielding herself in the power of the Holy Light. The Light would protect her. She would have faith that, even against terrible darkness, the Light would give her strength, and if she fell, then she would die with honor and join the naaru in death. 

"Oh, but there is much that the Legion can offer you," the Dreadlord said. "And what of you, warlock? You have already shown a willingness to use methods that others shun, and they will never trust you because of it. But we have far greater power that we can offer you. Why become a warlock if it was not power you were interested in?" 

"I'm not listening, demon," Dameon said, gritting his teeth. 

"Such a pity," the Dreadlord said. "But if you will not submit to the will of the Burning Legion, then I shall destroy you." 

He raised his hands, and sent forth a blast of infernal flames toward the two of them. Faruni's protective magic held out, but Dameon was knocked off his feet and badly charred. 

"Dameon!" Faruni yelled, stepping over toward the blackened body. He was still alive, still breathing raggedly, but he must have been in severe pain. She tried to bring forth a healing spell, but the Dreadlord wasn't done yet. 

Fel flames, sickly green, rained down upon them. Faruni clenched her teeth, focusing on defending herself and trying to protect Dameon as best as she could. It was no use, however. The onslaught was too much. Dameon's life was snuffed out as she watched helplessly. 

"Damn you," Faruni snarled, casting a hard gaze up toward the Dreadlord. No one deserved to die like that. 

Faruni straightened, and let the power of the Light fill her. It was just her against one Dreadlord. One lieutenant of the Burning Legion who needed to pay for his crimes. 

She stood against him with blade and shield and the Holy Light. He battered at her defenses with claws and fire and dark magic, but it was no use. The Seal of Light that filled her healed every scratch that got through with every strike she made against him. 

"You are nothing against the power of the Light!" Faruni screamed, slamming her shield into him and knocking him down. She leaped up onto him and drove her sword into his throat. The Dreadlord died in a gurgle of green blood. 

Faruni stepped back, panting and wiping off her sword as she let her power fade. She stumbled a little, exhausted from the exertion of the fight. Looking over to the charred and broken bodies of her companions, she had to wonder why. She shook her head. There was no point to that thought. 

It wasn't safe here. She had to get back through the portal, and return to Honor Hold. They needed to hear her report. They needed to know about this. If this were a portal to Azeroth, and she could not be certain if it was or was not, they definitely needed to prepare. 

Back into the building where she'd come in, staggering a little. But the interior of the building was in ruins. Where the portal had been, there were only fragments, shards of metal and crystal. There would be no return from here. She was trapped, alone and surrounded by demons, and she didn't even know where she was. 

* * *

Serriya guided the Ar'ketak over the mainland. She was glad to see that its power held out even with the destruction of Atlantis. She'd been a little worried that its power source might have been tied into it, but it seems that its crystals could operate well enough independently. She pointed the Ar'ketak toward where she thought the nearest Atlantean outpost was, and let it fly on automatic for a while. 

She set up a rotating watch with her squad, and went over to see to the civilians. Pandora was still quiet, no doubt shaken hard by the destruction of Atlantis. Serriya had seen many of her friends and comrades die even to the sticks and stones the barbarians wielded against them, but Pandora had barely even left Atlantis. This must be really hard on her. Well, it was hard on Serriya, too, but she knew that falling apart over it wouldn't help anyone. She needed to be practical, and be a strong leader in a time of crisis. 

"Where are we going?" Adina wondered, huddled up in the hold of the Ar'ketak. 

"I'm not sure," Serriya admitted. "I've only actually seen the area around the portals. And I'm afraid I couldn't tell you specifically where any of those even are without looking at a map." 

"So what are we going to do now?" Adina asked. 

"We should try to get to one of the outposts, and see if any of them survived," Serriya said. "If the portals opened up to other worlds randomly, they couldn't have _all_ opened to places where there were monsters immediately outside." 

"Some of them were still intact," Pandora said distantly. "Some were wondering what the problem was." 

"So where's the nearest portal from here?" Scregor asked. 

"That's a very good question," Serriya said, sighing. "We're heading for the mainland at the moment. We'll try to figure out where we're going better when it gets light out, and see what's left of our world." 

It made for a bit of a hungry night, and a rough one. Serriya knew that the civilians weren't used to roughing it like this, even if the Ar'ketak did have beds in it. No help for it, though. Serriya was more concerned about the barbarians, and what they might do. Some of them might even try to kill any Atlanteans they saw. That could be a problem. They would need to be wary. Not to mention however many monsters might be roaming about the world right now. 

Morning came, bringing the sun dawning over a broken world. In the light of day, it was easy to see the destruction even from the middle of nowhere. Serriya climbed up to the prow of the airship and gazed out over the landscape. Forests were burning, and she could see the ocean in the distance, where it looked like powerful waves had swallowed up the coastline. In the air, she could spot things flying that she took at first for birds, then realized that they were strange things that she had never seen before, though it was hard to tell exactly what they were from here aside from that they seemed to be not of this world. 

Pandora came up beside her and stared off silently. "I always wanted to see the world," she whispered. "But I never imagined it would be like this." 

Serriya put her arm around the other and held her comfortingly. "We'll make it through this, my love. I promise." 

"I'm going to hold you to that," Pandora said. "But nothing will ever be the same again, will it... I kept hoping that I would wake up, and all of this would have never happened." 

"Keep your eyes forward, Pandora. We can still make it through this." 

Serriya wasn't feeling nearly as confident about everything as she made herself sound, but for the Pandora's sake, she put on a brave face and didn't let her doubts show. 

"But without the Heart of Atlantis, we'll die," Pandora said. 

"Then we make what we can with the time that we have." 

Serriya wasn't certain that they'd survive the day, never mind a year or a decade. But she would be a fool if she didn't cherish every moment she spent with Pandora, even if it were spent fighting for their lives. 

Serriya decided that she didn't want to risk the Ar'ketak getting damaged by any flying monsters, and landed it some distance away. There didn't seem to be any monsters in this vicinity, although it would probably be a few hours' walk to the outpost. 

"The civilians should stay with the ship where it's safe," Serriya said. 

"You're not going anywhere without me," Pandora insisted. 

Serriya sighed. She didn't feel like arguing at the moment. "You know this is going to be dangerous, love. I don't want to see you get hurt." 

"I know," Pandora said, her voice shaking. "But I couldn't bear the thought of something happening to you, and not being there with you." 

"I could have died at any time when out fighting for the Empire. But I suppose things were a little different then. That was another life. That life is over now. You sure about this?" 

Pandora nodded. "I'll try to stay out of the way and not get into any trouble." 

Serriya looked to Adina and the other workers. "You four feel like staying safe?" They nodded, looking positively terrified. "Good. Nabek can stay here with you. See if you can scrounge up some food for us while we're gone." 

They headed down toward the outpost Serriya thought she'd seen from above. As they grew closer, Serriya could see that the things she had at first taken for birds were, in fact, humanoid forms with wings. They flitted about the air on wings like bats, and cackled as they threw fire from their hands toward the trees below. The group had to move quickly to avoid being caught up in the flames. 

"What are those things?" Pandora breathed, staring up at sky in horror. 

"I don't know, but we're going to kill them," Serriya said, pulling out her beam pistol and directing her squad to do likewise. 

They opened fire upon the monsters, managing to bring a few of them down and sending the remainder scattering. One of them fell nearby, and Serriya went over to examine it more closely. It was small, maybe a couple feet tall. How could something so small and weak cause so much destruction? 

There were more of these creatures the closer they got to the outpost, as well as other, larger beings of a similar nature to them. There were tall, muscular warriors, blue-skinned women with six arms, creatures with bat-like wings and hooves... They were vicious, ripping apart one of her squadmates beyond any hope of being able to heal him. Serriya doubted that they'd find anything of use at the outpost. It had probably been wiped out quickly by this sort of onslaught. 

Pandora averted her eyes from the sight of slaughter. Serriya didn't blame her for not wanting to look at the body of their slain comrade, and wished that she would have agreed to stay behind. It was an affront to an Atlantean to have to be buried in the earth, but they weren't close enough to the sea for that to be practical. Serriya took his crystal, and kept watch while the others quickly dug a small grave for the dead, to make sure that no one else would be joining him. 

"It would be too dangerous to get close, I think," Serriya said. "Let's write this one off and try to find another one. Pandora--" 

A flash of light split the sky. Another enemy? Serriya frowned, bringing her beam pistol to hand and peering out from behind a large rock to try to get a closer look. A bolt of light streaked up from the ground and struck one of the large flying creatures, bringing it tumbling to the ground. 

"Someone's attacking the monsters," Serriya said quietly. 

"A potential ally?" Scregor said. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend, they say." 

"We should still be cautious," Serriya warned, coming out and approaching the spot where the beams had been originating from. 

There, standing in a clearing and surrounded by the bodies of monsters, was a... woman? Well, female at least. Serriya might have mistaken her for the creatures that she was killing if it weren't for the fact that this one was slaying the monsters and wasn't immediately hostile toward them. She had blue skin, elegantly curling horns curving out from beneath her dark blue hair, a slender tail, and small hooves. She was wearing silvery armor and carrying a short sword and a round shield. 

"Humans? And a dwarf? Hold, my friends. I am not one of the attackers. I mean you no harm." She put away her sword and shield, and held up her empty hands. 

At least the translators were still working. Serriya had wondered if they would, after the destruction of the Heart of Atlantis. It seemed that the bits of crystal still had at least some residual power without it. 

"How can we be certain that we can trust you?" Scregor said suspiciously, still gripping his axe. 

"Who are you?" Serriya asked. "And what are these things?" 

"My name is Faruni. I am a paladin of the draenei people, a holy champion of the Light. These are demons, creatures tainted by darkness. Some of them may have been kin to me once, but they have chosen to take up arms with the Burning Legion for the sake of power or sheer bloodlust, and so they are enemies to me now." 

Serriya wasn't sure what to think about that, but she politely introduced herself and her companions. She was in no position to turn down any potential ally. The dwarf, however, kept his axe in hand and continued to eye the draenei intently. 

"Is the portal still intact?" Pandora asked, her eyes lighting up with desparate hope. 

"I'm afraid not," Faruni replied. "It exploded sometime after I arrived, stranding me here. There were others with me, but I'm afraid I'm the only survivor myself." 

"I'm sorry for your losses," Serriya said. 

"We just lost... everything... ourselves," Pandora said bitterly, looking to the ground. 

"Not everything," Serriya told her gently. "We still have each other." 

"How did you ever survive here?" Pandora wondered. "This place is crawling with those... demons!" 

"I put my faith in the Holy Light to protect me and keep me safe and well," Faruni said. "And it did not fail me." 

Another group of demons was closing in on them. They turned their weapons upon their enemies, and dispatched them after a brief fight. Pandora looked like she wanted to shrink into the ground and hide, however. 

"Do not fear," Faruni said to her. "So long as I am with you, I will not allow harm to befall you." 

Another "hero", Serriya thought. Someone willing to help people that she'd just met for no reason other than because she believed it was the right thing to do. Serriya still thought it a very strange thing, but she found herself having to quietly admire people like this. She wasn't going to admit that aloud just yet, however. 

She'd spent all her life fighting for Atlantis. Fighting for the glory of the Empire. Now, all she had left to fight for was Pandora's safety. It was enough to keep her going, at least. But what if there were something more to hope for? No, this wasn't the time to be thinking about this. Just fighting for survival was a struggle enough at the moment. She'd worry about this later. 

"Pandora," Serriya said. "Do you happen to remember any of the locations of outposts that weren't affected?" 

Pandora nodded, and listed off some names. Serriya frowned deeply, trying to bring up a map in her mind as to where those places were located physically. Pandora might be glad to know that the land of the duckmoles was safe, but that was a long, long way from here. But there were some of them that were relatively nearby. Serriya had never actually traveled very far purely on foot. She had no idea how long it might actually take them to reach these places. 

"Where are these places?" Faruni asked. 

"The closest one would be north and east, over the mountains," Serriya said. "We have a flying vessel that will cut down on travel time considerably." 

"I will travel with you, if you would have me," Faruni said. 

"You are more than welcome," Serriya said. This time yesterday, if someone had told her that she'd be feeling this grateful for the help of a barbarian, especially one who wasn't even human, she'd have thought them mad. 

"We should get away from this place," Pandora said, peering about at the demons still flitting around in the distance. "It's not safe here. I don't want to stay anywhere near these monsters any longer than necessary." 

"A wise suggestion," Faruni said. 

"We should get back to the airship," Serriya said. 

They turned and headed off away from the demon-infested outpost. Serriya had to wonder just how many demons had come through the portal while it was open. And how Faruni's party had managed to get through unscathed. 

"Out of curiosity, what is the name of the world that the portal brought me to?" Faruni asked. 

"We didn't know that other worlds even existed until yesterday," Pandora replied. "We just called it 'the world' or 'the earth'." 

"Earth?" Faruni repeated. "That is as suitable a name as any." 

"What... What was the world you are from like?" Pandora asked tentatively. 

"I was born on a world called Draenor," Faruni said. "But great calamity befell my home, and some of my people managed to flee to another world, called Azeroth." 

"Those others who came with you. Were they friends of yours?" Pandora asked hesitantly. 

Faruni thought for a moment, and then sighed. "Not particularly. I wished no ill upon them, and I did my best to save them, but they were foolish, and paid for it with their lives." 

"If you didn't like them, why were you working with them?" Pandora wondered. 

"Sometimes it is necessary to work with those whom you personally dislike in order to achieve a common goal," Faruni said. "Sometimes one must work with those whom you disagree with in order to achieve your own goals, provided they do not conflict too badly with the goals of the other. In this case, I had only recently met them, and when we teamed up for a mission, I did not realize that our goals would be so inherently incompatible." She shook her head. "No, I will not speak ill of them. The gnome tried his best, and I have to give the warlock credit for refusing temptation even to save his own life." 

"I hope that you don't wind up feeling the same way about us," Serriya grumbled. "I have no intention of doing anything so stupid, but all I'm concerned about at the moment is survival and protecting my friends." She looked over toward Pandora for a long moment. 

"So long as you do not stoop to doing anything reprehensible for the sake of mere survival," Faruni said. 

Serriya bit back a retort. She felt a little insulted to be judged by this barbarian. She didn't know what the draenei's standards might be of what was reprehensible or not. There were barbarian tribes in the world who considered ritual sacrifice to be perfectly acceptable, and ones who thought it was an unspeakable thing for a woman to have relations with another woman. Serriya refused to be held to anyone else's standards. 

They made it back to the Ar'ketak after killing a few more demons along the way. The group that had been left with the airship had managed to scrounge up some fruits and venison. At least they weren't in immediate danger of starvation. Once everyone was on board, Serriya activated the Ar'ketak again and set a course in the general direction of the next outpost. 

"I don't suppose you have any sort of provisions on you," Serriya said, looking over to the draenei woman. 

"I'm afraid I do not have much, but I will share what I have," Faruni said, pulling out her pack. 

Serriya had only been asking to see if she could provide for herself for now. The generosity was unexpected. The draenei was so kind that it hurt sometimes. It reminded her of Pandora. But Faruni wasn't afraid to kill, to her hands dirty, to fight to defend what she cared about. 

No, she shouldn't be thinking like this. She'd been together with Pandora for over a hundred years. It had been an unexpected relationship to begin with, given how different the two of them were. She wasn't about to break the woman's heart now, though. And unless they found some new source of longevity, they would likely wither and die within a few decades, like common barbarians. It wasn't worth the pain. 

These dark thoughts were useless. No good would come of it. She looked over to Pandora and sighed softly. Her lover's mind was clearly not in any good place, either. Pandora probably thought she was being quiet and discreet, but she was curled up, facing a wall, and sobbing quietly. 

Serriya went over and put her arms around Pandora from behind, and the other woman leaned her head against her shoulder. There were tears running down her face. Serriya gently wiped them away. She would kill to see Pandora smile again. 

"Why are we even doing this?" Pandora whispered. "What's the point? What's the point in any of this?" 

"Don't give up hope yet, my love," Serriya assured her. "Never give up. And if you feel that you cannot go on, then I will carry you every step of the way." 

"But what will we do even if we _can_ find an outpost that's still intact? Even if there's any survivors, Atlantis is gone, gone forever!" 

"Faruni lost her home, too," Serriya said. "And they found refuge in another world. Maybe we can do the same." 

Pandora's eyes lit up as the thought sunk in, and Serriya's heart melted to see a look of hope in her beloved's eyes again. "Maybe you're right. Maybe we could. I studied the readings from the incident. I might be able to replicate it." 

Serriya smiled. "That's my girl. Hold that thought. Now, why don't we get something to eat? You must be starved." 

Pandora nodded. "Right, of course. I forget sometimes, you know." 

Serriya chuckled softly. "Oh, I know. It's a wonder that you didn't starve to death while I was off making war." 

They headed down into the ship's mess. Serriya was glad to note that the Ar'ketak's kitchen was fully functional as well. Having a working cooktop and oven was certainly convenient, and at least half of them were passable cooks. Serriya had been concerned that they'd wind up having to gnaw on raw venison or find a way to cook things in a more primitive fashion, her mind bringing up horrified thoughts of trying to set up a campfire on the deck or in the middle of the hold or something. It was a silly fear, she knew. 

Perhaps the ship's continued functionality meant that their own crystals would be able to sustain them on their own, but Serriya doubted that it could last forever. 

"We picked up someone new, I see," Adina said, coming into the mess and giving Faruni a long look. "What is it?" 

Faruni snorted softly. "I am a draenei, and I'm a _she_." 

"Er, sorry," Adina said sheepishly. "I've just never seen a... draenei... before." 

"Apology accepted," Faruni said, her brief anger sliding smoothly away again as quickly as it came. "At least you weren't calling me a demon and screaming in panic or attempting to kill me on sight, like some humans might do." 

"It's strange," Scregor said. "I've seen demons before, and they didn't look anything like those. Well, I suppose they were the same general idea, though." 

"Where are you from, dwarf?" Faruni asked. 

"The name is Scregor Aeducan. And I'm from a world called Thedas. Perhaps the demons in my world are different from yours?" 

"Perhaps," Faruni said. "I know nothing about this Thedas. Did the Burning Legion attempt to invade that world as well?" 

"Never heard of it. We did have problems with darkspawn, though. And I don't believe the nonsense the Chantry spouted about how they were inflicted upon the world of mortals by the Maker as punishment for our sins, either." 

"If the gods are punishing _us_ for our sins, they're being awfully creative about it," Serriya commented ruefully. 

"I'm sure that this wasn't the doing of divine retribution," Adina said. "I think I just screwed up really, really badly. I'm putting myself on kitchen duty as punishment." 

"Hey, at least you can cook better than you can work portals," Serriya said. 

"I'm not sure if that's supposed to be a compliment or not."


	3. Paladins and Barbarians

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter involves... something that might have been Warhammer?

Faruni found the Ar'ketak vessel to be fascinating. It reminded her somewhat of the sort of technology that her own people used. She went down to take a closer look at the crystals that powered the ship. Gleaming vibrant blue, conducting energy that kept the vessel aloft, just like the crystals that the Atlanteans all wore around their necks. 

"Excuse me? What are you doing in here?" said an alarmed female voice. 

Faruni turned to see Pandora standing in the doorway to the engine room. "Oh, pardon me. I was merely looking. I meant no harm." 

"You better not have touched anything," Pandora snapped, going over to examine the crystals, doubtless ensuring that they were still functioning properly. 

"I have no intention of attempting to cause this vessel to crash," Faruni assured her. "And the reputation that my people have developed for crashing things is entirely undeserved." 

"You have a reputation for crashing things?" 

"You crash into _one planet_..." Faruni said, rolling her eyes and sighing melodramatically. 

Pandora stared at her incredulously for a few seconds, and then snickered softly. "I didn't realize you had a sense of humor." 

"Did you believe that I am merely the stoic paladin all of the time?" Faruni asked, her lips quirking into a small grin. For her part, she was mainly just glad that she was no longer stranded here alone. 

"You do kind of give off that impression. So what made you come down here, anyway? Were you just lost, or wanted to stare at the pretty crystals while very carefully not touching anything?" 

"It's just similar to what my own people use," Faruni replied. "Our ship, the Exodar, has glowing crystals of various shapes and sizes throughout it. After it crashed, it became the home city for my people. So it reminds me a little of home." 

"Oh, I see. I didn't realize anyone else used crystal-based technology. I thought that was unique to the Atlanteans... but then I didn't realize other worlds existed, either." 

Pandora looked at her appraisingly. Faruni had to wonder what these humans thought of her. She saw the way they looked at her, either outright distrustful or just plain curious. But she was used to that sort of reaction, and she was even more of a stranger and outsider here than she had been on Azeroth. 

"There are more worlds out there than either of us could ever hope to imagine," Faruni said. 

"So this Exodar... it was a ship the size of a city, that could travel to different worlds? With crystals?" Pandora went on thoughtfully. "Can you tell me more about it? What manner of crystals were used in its construction? How was the power flow distributed throughout the central processing network? How did it handle the energy harmonics of interdimensional transportation?" 

Faruni held up a hand to stop the flow of questions. "I apologize, but I am afraid that I must disappoint you. I am a paladin, a holy warrior. I know little of engineering or crystal working." 

Pandora's face fell. "I see," she said flatly. 

"I can tell you what little I know, and describe to you what I've seen. But I do not understand how the underlying principles really work." 

"You'd probably do better than Serriya would when she tries to explain to other people what exactly it is that I do," Pandora said with a smirk. "I suppose I shouldn't expect anything more." 

After speaking a bit more with Pandora and answering her prying questions as best as she could, Faruni headed up onto the deck of the Atlantean craft. She wished that she could tell Pandora more to satisfy her curiosity and perhaps find a way to leave this world, but it was an area well beyond her expertise, and there was little she could do. 

It was a warm and sunny day, and the mountains that they were flying over were as yet untouched by the destruction wrought by any dimensional beings. She couldn't help but be concerned about the Burning Legion, however. Simply destroying the portal that had brought them here wouldn't be enough. They knew that this world was here, and ripe for conquest. It would not surprise her if they tried to return, one way or another. The Dreadlord had probably sent off a messenger telling about this place while the portal was still open, after all. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. 

Ahead of them, not too far away, she spotted what appeared to be a village. Lines of smoke streaked into the sky, and she could just make out some crude buildings from here. Faruni glanced over to where Serriya was standing, further along the deck, and approached her. 

"Are we going to stop in at that village for provisions?" Faruni asked. 

Serriya gave her a look of undisguised disgust. "No. They're barbarians." 

Faruni frowned in confusion. "You mean, they would attack us on sight?" 

"They might," Serriya said, shrugging. "If they're foolish. Unless you're suggesting that we go and raid them for supplies, which is always an option." 

Faruni's eyes widened, horrified at the thought. "Certainly not!" 

"Then we won't be stopping at that village." 

"Can our provisions take us until the next outpost?" 

Serriya shook her head. "We'll need to stop and do some more foraging by the day after tomorrow at the latest." 

"Then we could certainly use the supplies. Perhaps the dwarf and I could go and approach them instead, if you think they would be hostile to you Atlanteans. Or maybe just the dwarf, since they might think that I'm a demon." 

Serriya paused thoughtfully for a moment, then gave a short nod. "Barbarians to deal with other barbarians? Fine." She went over toward the controls to start their descent. 

Faruni frowned deeply and cast a glare at the human woman. "What? I am _not_ a barbarian!" 

"Well, you're certainly not an Atlantean," Serriya said. 

"You think everyone who isn't one of your own people is a barbarian?" Faruni said in shock. How could anyone think that way? 

"Don't get me wrong," Serriya said. "You're a barbarian whose aid I'm very grateful to have." 

"I cannot believe this! Simply because someone is different from you does not imply that they are any better or worse than you. Do you honestly believe that your technological advancement makes you better than everyone else in this world? The worth of a being cannot be measured solely by their technological or magical achievements." 

"Don't presume to judge me," Serriya snapped. "You have no idea what I've been through." 

"There is nothing that could excuse blatant racism, Serriya!" 

Serriya stalked up toward her. "You want to know what I've seen? Fine. On my first expedition out from Atlantis, we were sent for exploration, not for conquest. We had scholars along, scientists, linguists interested in studying the barbarian tongues. Only a handful of soldiers. We didn't think that they would be any danger to us. But they took us by surprise, captured us in traps and nets, and disarmed us. All our advanced technology did us no good against these barbarians armed with sticks and stones." 

"It was arrogant to think that they were incapable of doing anything." 

"We underestimated them, to be sure. They starved us. They tortured us. They took the civilians, flayed them alive as we watched. My people had been so fascinated to be discovering other cultures, and that was what happened to them. They got a good look at those cultures first hand. Screaming in agony. Dying. Slowly. And then left to rot in the sun, pecked at by birds. Some of those people were my friends. I'd known them for centuries." 

Faruni's stomach turned in horror. "How did you escape?" she asked quietly. 

Serriya took a deep breath and looked away, her eyes twitching about this way and that. "I was the only one that got away. The others sacrificed themselves so that I could escape and warn our people." 

"I am sorry," Faruni said softly. "My own people had their problems with... barbarians... on the world upon which I was born. They were called orcs. Violent, bloodthirsty beings. Many of us died because of them." 

Serriya didn't reply, continuing to stare off quietly. Faruni hoped that she hadn't upset the woman too much. After what she'd been through, Faruni couldn't blame her for distrusting and disliking these barbarians. She imagined that she would have reacted similarly had someone asked her to seek aid from the orcs. 

Serriya brought the Ar'ketak in for a landing, settling it onto the ground some ways away from the village Faruni had seen. The human woman pulled out a crystal from her pocket like the ones she and the others wore, and handed it to Faruni. 

"Take this, and wear it," Serriya said. "It belonged to one of my fallen comrades. It'll let you speak with the barbarians." 

"Thank you," Faruni said, putting it on around her neck reverently. 

"If you lose it, I'll kill you." Serriya looked away again, in the general direction of the village. "Go, if you're going to do something. We'll wait here until tomorrow morning. If you aren't back by then, we're going to slaughter every barbarian in that village." 

Faruni opened her mouth to protest that sentiment, and then closed it again, thinking of the villagers as orcs, and just nodded. She turned and went back down into the hold, to where she'd last seen Scregor. If these people turned out to be hostile after all, she would be glad to have his axe at her side. 

"Scregor. Would you accompany me on a brief mission to a nearby village for supplies?" 

"Can't you do this yourself?" Scregor said with a grunt. "I'm not some errand boy." 

"I am not certain yet if the villagers will react in a hostile manner to us or not. I request your assistance in this matter." 

"So I'm playing bodyguard, then. Fine. I can do that." 

The two of them gathered up their gear and disembarked from the vessel. The Ar'ketak had put down its landing struts down in a small mountain valley. Faruni set off toward the village, the dwarf at her side. 

"Do you have a problem with me, dwarf? Is it because you think I look like a demon?" 

"It's the horns," Scregor replied. "The hooves don't help much, either. You remind me of a Desire Demon. Except you're blue and not pink or purple." 

"A... Desire Demon?" Faruni asked. 

"Seductive monsters that try to draw in mortals by tempting them with whatever they desire most," Scregor explained, not looking at her. "Generally don't wear much, either." 

"Ah. We call those succubi. I can assure you that I am not a succubus." 

Scregor snorted softly. "You'll forgive me if I'm cautious about someone who seems to be exactly everything I might have ever desired. It would seem to be a little convenient." 

Faruni's face burned. "I am not that kind of draenei, Scregor." She was used to other races finding the females of her kind attractive, but she'd never been propositioned by a _dwarf_ of all things before. They usually liked their women to be a little more... broad. 

"Ah. Good. Be warned, if you ever try coming on to me, you're getting an axe straight between the horns." 

Faruni snorted softly and rolled her eyes. "There will not be much danger of that. You are _not_ my type." Not unless he were a blacksmith, perhaps, at any rate. No, now she was just stereotyping dwarves. 

Was that all that the silly dwarf was really worried about? What a foolish concern. If she were really a demon, she could find more subtle ways to get her hands on his soul. Not that there weren't plenty of demons who were forthright and direct, but the truly dangerous ones were the ones you never saw coming. 

The two of them neared the village. It was a small, rough cluster of dwellings made up of animal hides. These didn't look to be permanent structures. Faruni imagined that they were probably a nomadic tribe. There were a number of animals around, and the brown-skinned humans tending to them looked up at the strangers with alarm and surprise when they saw them. 

"Be at ease," Faruni said, holding up her empty hands. "We come in peace." 

A glance down at Scregor indicated that he was appearing to be a little less peaceful, but at least he only had his hands folded across his chest, and not his axe in hand looking ready to kill someone. "I don't have one of those magic crystals, so you're going to have to talk to them yourself. I'll be ready to do some chopping if they prove not to be friendly." 

A trio of tribesmen hesitantly approached Faruni and Scregor, spears in hand. One of them spoke up. "What do you want?" 

"We seek supplies. Perhaps we can trade?" 

"Trade?" said the man, brightening. "Yes! Trade! We have much food. Goat's milk and meat, fresh fruits and vegetables, bread and cheese. What can you offer?" 

After hearing Serriya's horror stories, Faruni had been worried about a far worse reception than this. Clearly, this was a different group of barbarians from the ones Serriya described. That group had doubtless been wiped out by the Atlanteans in bloody vengeance for their kin, she thought. She couldn't really blame them. 

"I fear that we do not have much in the way of material goods to offer in exchange. However, I can offer you my services as a healer. Do you have anyone who is ill or injured and requires care?" 

"A healer? Ah! Very valuable! Glad you came! Yes, we have sick people. Sickness isn't spreading, but they get worse and worse." 

The tribesmen led her off toward one of the tents, where there were three women laid out on pallets on the floor. Faruni could tell there was something wrong even from there, just by the smell. But this was nothing that the Holy Light could not deal with. 

Faruni knelt before them, and concentrated, closing her eyes and calling upon the power of the Light to purify these hapless souls. Healing warmth spread through her, and light flooded the room for a few moments. 

The women stirred, and one of them said, "What is this? I'm cured?" 

"By the power of the Holy Light, you are well once again," Faruni said, climbing to her feet. "This illness came on suddenly, no more than a few days ago, unless I miss my guess?" 

"That's right," said the tribal spokesman. 

"Was there an Atlantean outpost near here, by chance?" 

"Yes, there was. But everyone there was killed recently. It looked like a battle that completely wiped out both sides. We scavenged through the remnants for anything we could use, and these three fell ill that very night." 

"Show me what you found there." 

The spokesman lead her and Scregor out and off toward another tent. "We didn't dare touch them, so we kept them in here away from everyone else." 

"A wise precaution," Faruni said, going inside and looking around. 

The tent was full of various scraps salvaged from the Atlantean outpost. She wasn't familiar enough with Atlantean technology to know what most of them were, although she did recognize a couple weapons among the lot. However, she quite clearly noticed a few things that seemed out of place, and were definitely not of Atlantean design. Even without that, the evil aura that they emitted practically set off alarms to her paladin senses. 

"What did the attackers look like?" Faruni asked, leaning over one of the strange, twisted weapons. 

"Human. Pale men, gaunt and diseased. Covered in sores, dripping with pus. They didn't look like they should have been walking around even before they died, never mind fighting." 

Faruni went to reach for the weapons, but Scregor put his hand on her shoulder and stopped her. "You might not want to touch those. I can sense some sort of taint in them." 

"I will be alright," Faruni assured him, and gathered them up. She doubted that a paladin such as herself could get infected by something like this, but she could as readily heal herself as she had the three women if it did. 

"Are those things the cause of the sickness?" asked the speaker. 

"I believe so, yes. I will destroy them." She took them outside to a spot a little ways away from the village, and called upon the Light to bring down holy destruction upon these implements of evil. As the others watched on, there was a blinding burst of white fire, and when it faded, the taint was gone. 

"Thank you, stranger. Please, if there are any other items that we brought back from the outpost that you want, feel free to take them. We will see about bringing some food for you to take with you. You have done much for us." 

The tribesmen went off to gather up some provisions for them. Faruni went back into the tent where the scavenged Atlantean goods were being kept, and collected the crystal pendants. Serriya would be glad to have these back. She handed one of them to Scregor as well. He peered at it for a few seconds before shrugging and putting it on around his neck. 

Scregor looked thoughtfully toward Faruni. "So you can cure diseases and purge taint? Are you a mage, then?" 

"No! Certainly not," Faruni protested. "Don't equate the power of the Holy Light to arcane magic." She didn't think that he meant to offend. He was a dwarf, after all, and they could not be expected to understand the finer distinctions of magic. 

"Where did your power come from, then?" Scregor wondered. "And don't tell me that it was a gift from the Maker or whatever such nonsense." 

"The Light is not a deity. It is..." Faruni took a deep breath. She was a warrior of the Light, not a priest to try to teach and spread the ways of righteousness. Still, she was obligated to try as best as she could. "It is a force of goodness in the universe. My power comes from the connection between myself and the positive energy of the universe itself." 

"So it's magic," Scregor said flatly. 

Faruni sighed in frustration. The dwarf didn't understand. She must be calm. She must be patient. Understanding does not always come easily. "It's not the same thing." 

Scregor shrugged. "It makes little difference to me, anyway. I was just wondering if you were able to cure even the darkspawn taint with it. I've seen mages who could heal before, but none of them could wipe away poison, corruption, and disease like it were a speck of dirt. I once had to climb a mountain to find a legendary pot just to cure a man who had been poisoned." 

"Darkspawn taint? I do not know what this is, but it is possible. I will not give any guarantees, as there are things that even a priest or paladin of the Holy Light cannot heal. Tell me more about this taint." 

"There's these corrupted beings called darkspawn that live in the Deep Roads, in the remnants of the old dwarven lands," Scregor explained. "Anyone that becomes infected by their blood will either die, or if they're really unlucky, they'll slowly be transformed into a ghoul. Unless they're a Grey Warden, like me." He glanced about. "I'm about to tell you Grey Warden secrets. So don't tell anyone, alright? Not like it even matters around here, anyway." 

"I will keep your secrets, Scregor," Faruni promised. 

"Grey Wardens become immune to the taint by taking it into ourselves in a ritual. It's merely a delaying tactic, though. Instead of dying immediately, we die in a few decades. Well, except for that one creepy blood mage who seemed to have been alive for a few centuries or something, but I never did find out just how he accomplished _that_." 

Faruni made a distasteful expression. "Mages, especially blood mages, are often willing to do terrible things for their own advancement." 

"He was no exception," Scregor said. "I killed him." He shrugged. 

"I can try to cure this taint in you, if you wish," Faruni offered. She had heard of those who made sacrifices in order to fight evil, but some were more extreme than others. 

Scregor nodded. "Do it." 

Faruni closed her eyes and channeled the Light once again, directing it into Scregor's body. There was definitely something unpleasant within him, but it was no ordinary poison or disease. Try as she might, it remained firmly rooted in the dwarf's blood. She knew that she was not the mightiest servant of the Light, and there were things that even the Light could not cure, but she had hoped to be able to give the dwarf some good news. But it was not to be. 

"I am sorry," Faruni said, opening her eyes and releasing her power. "I cannot cure this." 

Scregor nodded, looking not as disappointed as she feared he would. "Yeah. Thanks for trying. It's not like I mind being a Grey Warden or anything. I was just thinking, if I ever get home again..." 

"Are these darkspawn a serious problem where you come from?" 

"Oh, yes. Yes, they are." He chuckled softly. "I have no cause to complain, though. I chose to be stuck here. I could have stepped right back through that portal and gone home when the Atlanteans were evacuating. But I decided to go with them and see what I could do for this world." 

"You're a good person, Scregor," Faruni said with a faint smile of admiration. 

The tribesmen finished bringing in their food, and thanked them profusely again. The two of them gathered it up onto their backs as well as they could. They might need to take a couple trips to haul it all off to the ship. These "barbarians" had been quite generous. Faruni hoped that they wouldn't starve themselves in order to display their gratitude to a stranger. 

"How far away is your ship?" asked the speaker. 

He'd obviously overheard them talking about the Ar'ketak. Faruni had not specifically told him about it, but it was pretty clear that Scregor and her were not intending on carrying these provisions on their backs for long. 

"About an hour's walk to the south," Faruni replied. 

"We can help carry the supplies there if you want." 

"You have done much for us already, but it would be appreciated if you do not mind. Our vessel is Atlantean. Will that be a problem?" 

"Not at all. If all Atlanteans were like you, this land would be a far better place." 

"We are not Atlanteans, although we are traveling with some," Faruni said. "The world has changed. Atlantis will likely never return to power again." 

"I cannot say that I am sorry to hear that. We traded with the Atlanteans, and they tended to leave us be, but they slaughtered anyone who breathed a word of disagreement toward them. They bore weapons of power and strange magic that we could not fight against. What was it that finally brought them down?" 

"From what I understood, they had strained that power to the breaking point," Faruni replied. "It could not go any further, and destroyed everything that they had built." 

"There is a lesson to be learned here, I believe." 

Faruni nodded quietly. "Perhaps so." 

With the help of three of the tribesmen, Faruni and Scregor carried the supplies back toward the Ar'ketak. When they arrived, Serriya looked out at them in clear surprise, and practically gaped as the supposed barbarians brought several bags full of food up onto the vessel and placed them on the deck. 

Once they left, Serriya said, "Maybe I underestimated you, Faruni." 

"Or the 'barbarians'." 

* * *

Scregor was a little disappointed that the draenei couldn't cure him. It's not like he'd really wanted to become a Grey Warden. It had all been merely a matter of survival, after all. There hadn't been a lot of options open to him at the time. He shouldn't be too surprised, though. He'd never even considered the possibility of a cure before today. 

He absently fingered the lyrium crystal Faruni had given him. Well, at least he _thought_ it was lyrium. He wasn't sure what else it could be, but who really knew, with interdimensional travel? It felt good and refreshing, although Serriya gave him a long, hard look when she saw him with it. She said nothing, however, and turned away to question Faruni. 

"Did you find out anything about the portal?" Serriya asked. "Is it still intact?" 

Faruni shook her head. "I found remnants of it in the scraps that had been scavenged from the outpost. It had been broken into many pieces." 

"Then we move on to the next one," Serriya said, stepping over into the small control room at the back of the ship. 

The Ar'ketak's landing struts retracted, and the vessel slowly rose into the sky again with a soft hum. Scregor decided that now was a good time to get back into the ship's hold. Dwarves weren't intended to fly. Just when he thought he'd gotten over the feeling of falling into the sky just from being on the surface, now he was flying around in the sky, with a lot more sky to fall into. He didn't like to look out at it overly much. 

At least they'd brought in plenty of food from the human village. That would keep them going for a little bit. And he was hungry after all the walking and hauling. He took a seat in the mess to fill up his stomach. 

As he was eating, Pandora came over and sat across from him. "Hello, Scregor." 

He grunted at her. "Pandora. You need something?" 

She opened her mouth as if to ask something, and seemed to change her mind mid-stream as her eyes flicked down to Scregor's amulet. "Where did you get that crystal?" 

"Faruni gave it to me," Scregor replied. "It was with some stuff that the humans looted from a nearby outpost. Is there a problem with that?" 

Pandora frowned. "Every Atlantean is given one on their naming day. They protect us, and give us long life, and magical powers. I fear that with the loss of the Heart of Atlantis, their power may have been weakened, but at least we can still understand one another." 

"What, were the crystals connected somehow to the big one?" Scregor wondered. 

"Ah, well, while each individual crystalline segment generates a substantial quantity of energy of its own, the subsequent lack of distribution of the power flows severely restricts the capacity of the resulting systems in isolation." 

"I'm not so sure that translation is actually working," Scregor commented, blinking at her. 

"Oh. Sorry. Alright, I'll explain it to you like I would to Serriya, then. Each crystal still has some power on its own, but the control center in Atlantis allowed me to link all the power together and move it where it was most needed." 

"I see," Scregor said. "I think." As well as could be expected, anyway. "Was there something you wanted to talk to me about?" 

"Oh, right, yes, of course. I was curious about the world you are from. Could you tell me a bit about it, perhaps?" 

"Thedas?" Scregor shrugged. "What do you want to know?" 

"Is everyone there like you?" 

"What, a dwarf? No. There's plenty of humans there like you as well, and some other things you're probably not familiar with. Besides the darkspawn, which you've seen." 

"Were you from a small barbarian village? Or a great city like Atlantis?" 

"I'm from a city called Orzammar. A big place, like Atlantis, but underground, not on an island." 

"What was it like there?" Pandora asked excitedly. 

Scregor chuckled softly. "As a friend of mine said once, people are complex. An entire people cannot be summed up in the manner of, 'Orzammar is full of stout, bearded people who enjoy mining and alcohol.'" 

"Oh. Well, I suppose that's true." 

"Besides. What does it matter? If we can ever get a portal opened up there again, you can see for yourself. Otherwise, it's not relevant. Let's concern ourselves with the situation at hand, and not dwell on what is out of our grasp." 

"I can probably get a portal open again," Pandora said. "I'm just curious, can you really blame me for that?" 

"Maybe it's more that I don't really want to talk about it than anything else." 

Scregor was pretty disgusted with his own people, really. First they exiled him for a crime he didn't commit, and then when they could not ignore his actions any longer, they hailed him as a hero. They wanted to make him a Paragon, a living ancestor, an embodiment of dwarven virtues. And he'd just snorted at them and walked away. He had no intention of returning to Orzammar even if she could get another portal open again. 

"I'm sorry," Pandora said. "I didn't mean to touch on a sensitive subject." 

Scregor shook his head and shrugged, finished up his meal, and headed into the crew quarters to rest. It wasn't like he was bitter or anything, and Pandora didn't deserve his animosity. He just held no love for his former home any longer.


	4. Monsters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter involves Geneforge.

Shaper Garven strode through the mountain pass, flanked by his creations on all sides. The big reptilian kyshakks and the muscular war tralls would make quick work of any Rebels that he came across during his journey. Any who defied the will of the Shapers would perish. 

Today, however, the mountains were quiet. There was no sign of rogue activity out in this part of Terrestia. Perhaps he would make it to Stormhold without incident. That would be almost disappointing, really. Although he didn't relish the thought of putting himself in harm's way, he had hoped to show discipline to some of those Rebels. He wanted to teach them firsthand what the consequences of resisting the Shapers were. 

Then, he spotted something strange off to the side of the trail. A flickering light, like fire. Perhaps a rebel campfire? He sent some of his creations in first to investigate, keeping some behind him in case it was an ambush. 

But there was nothing living here, and it was no fire. Instead, there was a red whirlpool hovering vertically just above the ground. What manner of magic was this? Some sort of portal? 

Garven wasn't about to risk himself or one of his more valuable creations to investigate it. He cleared away a patch of relatively smooth ground, and began to channel forth essence. He Shaped a creation, one of the simpler and weaker varieties. A green-skinned humanoid called a thahd took form before him. 

Once the creation was complete, Garven instructed it, "Go through that, look around, then come back and tell me what you saw." 

"Thahd punch?" said the creation dumbly. 

"No, no punching," Garven said firmly. "Just look, then come right back." 

"No punch," the thahd said. "Go. Look. Come back." 

It nodded, then went over to the fiery swirling disc. The portal rippled for a moment, and the thahd vanished. Garven tapped his foot, waiting for about half a minute. Then, with another ripple, the thahd stepped out of the portal again. 

"What did you see?" Garven asked. 

"Building. People," the thahd replied. "Glowy stuff." 

"Any creations?" Garven pressed. 

"No. No creations. Just people." 

"Good. Come here, creation. Your task is complete." 

The thahd obediently approached, and Garven placed his hand upon the creation's forehead. Carefully, he undid the bonds of essence within the being, and reabsorbed the magic that gave the creature life. The thahd melted, and then vanished as though it had never been. 

Garven directed his war tralls to lead the way through the portal. He wasn't sure what he would see on the far side, but his disposable thahd had proven that it was safe enough, at least. He came in after the war tralls, and the kyshakks came through behind him. 

There were people in the building on the far side of the portal, around half a dozen of them, all wearing blue crystals around their necks. The room itself was full of a number of crystal panels and conduits that reminded him a bit of Shaper technology, although it wasn't quite like anything he was familiar with, and it was lacking in the biological components common to the Shapers. 

"Monsters!" cried the various people around the room, panicking at the sight of his creations. Had these people never seen kyshakks or war tralls before? Admittedly, they were fairly recent creations, but it should be clear that he was a Shaper by the symbol on his robes. Had that portal taken him so far away that these people had never encountered a Shaper before? Inconceivable. The Shapers ruled all of the world. 

"You dare deny the will of the Shapers?" 

A couple of them pulled out some sort of wands, and started firing blasts of energy at his creations. That was a sure sign of aggression. They must die. 

" _Kill_ ," Garven commanded his creations. 

The kyshakks opened their mouths and let loose with blasts of lightning. The war tralls lifted their enormous clubs and slammed them into their enemies. When the battle was over, six dark-skinned humans lay dead, and the war tralls were somewhat burned by energy weapons. Garven channeled forth a quick healing spell to take care of the injuries. Always best to keep one's assets in good condition. 

Garven turned to look back at the portal. Red lightning crackled along the metal ring. Had the electrical discharge from his kyshakks damaged it in some way? He went over and examined the control panels, looking to find some way to stabilize it again, but the technology was too unfamiliar to him. 

Deciding that it would be prudent to evacuate the building, he sent his creations out through the door and headed outside after them. It could be dangerous to his health to attempt to use a damaged portal device. He might wind up being late to report back to Guardian Alwan in Stormhold, though, depending on what corner of Terrestia he'd wound up on. He suspected that the people he'd killed were Rebels experimenting with Shaper technology that they did not really understand. Although he'd never heard of a Shaper device that could do anything at all like that. No doubt they were trying to do something else, and this had all been an accident. 

The area outside the building looked to be somewhere in the mountains. Yes, it very likely _was_ a Rebel stronghold, he thought. But if that were so, then where were the creations? The rogue serviles, the hateful drakons? It was strange, although not inconceivable, for there to be only Rebel humans working on a project like this. 

Garven thought he spotted a village down in the valley below. Perhaps that was where the serviles were gathered. Along with his creations, he headed down the mountain trail, expecting to see the familiar stunted, robed humanoid forms of serviles as he approached. 

But instead, there were more humans arrayed amongst primitive structures, and speaking no language that he could understand. They panicked when they saw him, and some of them fled from his creations, or fell on their faces as if begging for mercy. Garven could appreciate that, at least. Definitely an improvement over attacking him. 

"Your deference to the rule of the Shapers is appreciated," Garven told them. "For that, I will spare you." 

The primitives gave no sign of understanding him, however. What sort of people were these if they could not understand the tongue of the Shapers, spoken throughout all the world? Inconceivable! Were they merely pretending, and playing him for the fool? 

None of this made any sense. Nothing added up. Perhaps there were more clues as to what was really going on up at the Rebel research post on the top of the cliff. Since he was getting nothing more from these primitives, clearly, he headed back up the trail again. He'd need to be cautious about the unstable crystal equipment. 

When he got back up top, he saw that there was nothing to worry about now. The room was full of smoke and crystal shards, and it seemed that anything that was going to explode had already done so. He'd seen it often enough in poorly maintained Shaper equipment, especially the sort used by the Rebels, who tended to be less cautious about it overall. 

After cleaning things up a little, Garven Shaped a wingbolt to do some aerial surveillance of the area, perhaps to locate some landmarks that could give him a clue as to where he'd wound up. The winged serpentine creation obediently flew out and up to take a look at the surroundings. 

In the meantime, he settled in to defend the place, and set up some amenities. Failing all else, he could set up a new Shaper outpost here, and attempt to research just what it was that these people had been trying to do here. 

* * *

Serriya stirred as Faruni came to wake her. 

"We are approaching the next outpost," Faruni said. "Let us be prepared for battle." 

Serriya nodded in acknoledgement and started to put her armor on. Where might this portal have randomly opened up to? What sort of creatures might have come through? She'd have to be prepared for anything. It was really kind of exciting, in a way. 

Serriya set the Ar'ketak down, and the warriors filed out, leaving behind two of the Atlantean soldiers to guard the ship and the civilians. Serriya set off in the general direction of the outpost, the others following along behind her. 

"It'll be a bit of a walk," Serriya said. "We spotted some flying creatures nearby, and decided to play it safe by landing a fair distance away." 

"More demons?" Faruni asked. 

The air was split by a screeching sound high above, and sunlight shone off silvery wings for a moment. It was only a flash, visible for a brief moment, and then it was gone again. 

"That was no demon," Scregor said. 

Nothing seemed to be immediately attacking them, however, so the group continued on. Then, as they grew closer to the outpost, strange creatures barred the narrow mountain trail. A pair of large reptiles with orange-brown scales roared out as they came close, and then seemed to breathe lightning in their direction. The group was taken by surprise, and while most of them escaped the blast unscathed, one of the Atlantean soldiers was brought down by the attack. 

"Pelad! Damn you monsters," Serriya snarled, shooting at them with her beam pistol repeatedly as she tried to close in with her lightblade. She brought the energy blade up in a sweeping motion underneath the creature's head, splitting open its throat lengthwise. It gurgled for a moment, spurting out blood, before dropping down dead. 

Scregor went after the second one, chopping at it with his axe. Serriya was surprised at how effective the crude, barbarian weapon was. Then it occurred to her that this was no ordinary axe, but was imbued with some sort of energy itself. Scregor made short work of the second reptile. 

Turning back to where Pelad's body lay, Serriya realized Faruni had stayed back to tend to him. A yellow-white light surrounding him slowly faded, and he climbed to his feet again. 

"Pelad will be fine," Faruni said. 

"Thank you," Serriya said, bowing her head in gratitude to the draenei woman. She had lost so many soldiers under her command, and had expected to lose another one today. She doubted that there was enough energy in the crystals to provide healing right now. That Pelad would live another day was a pleasant surprise. 

They continued on along the winding mountain path. This outpost had been situated in a defensible position high in the mountains, overlooking another barbarian settlement. 

"Watch out!" Scregor barked suddenly. 

Serriya ducked as a thrown rock nearly took her head off. What was attacking them now? There, up on a cliff overlooking the path, a large humanoid stood. A hideous muscular creature with grayish skin, wearing only a loincloth and a leather waist satchel. As she watched, it drew out another rock from its pouch and sent it flying down at the group, thankfully not hitting anyone. 

She whipped out her beam pistol and fired up at the monster, along with the other soldiers. Faruni raised her hands and called upon white fire to burn the creature. After a couple volleys of attacks, the humanoid tumbled forward off the cliff. The group scrambled to avoid the huge corpse landing on anyone. 

"Is it just me, or do these monsters seem to be guarding something?" Scregor asked. 

"I do not know whether the thunder lizards were intelligent, but this ogre certainly knew what he was doing," Faruni said, climbing over the corpse to continue on along the trail. 

They finally rounded the bend at the top of the climb, and came within sight of the outpost. Serriya paused cautiously as she saw that two more ogres and thunder lizards, as Faruni called them, were flanking the entrance to the building. 

"Very clearly playing guard here," Scregor said, eying them warily and hefting his axe. "But for who -- or what?" 

Serriya didn't like the odds against so many dangerous creatures at once. But they needed to find out if the portal was still intact. Perhaps they were intelligent enough to be reasoned with. It wasn't like she slaughtered every barbarian village she'd ever run across. 

"Be on your guard," Serriya said quietly to the others, and stepped forward. "Excuse me! We mean you no harm. We just want to speak with you." She hoped that they didn't realize that their companion was dead. 

The creatures didn't attack. They continued to stare blankly ahead, as the door to the outpost opened and a man wearing blue robes emerged. 

* * *

Garven heard a voice from outside, speaking words that he could understand. That had to be a good sign. A sign that he was not nearly as lost as he'd been starting to suspect that he was, after he failed to recognize anything of the local terrain. 

He stepped outside to see who it might be, and frowned a little at the sight. A handful more of those dark-skinned and white-haired humans, what looked like a blue-skinned demon, and a particularly bulky, bearded servile wearing heavy armor, and every one of them wearing those crystals around their necks. Definitely Rebels, he thought. The only thing that stayed his hand to avoid striking them down where they stood was the fact that they had expressed a wish to speak with him, and were not immediately hostile. Best to see what they wanted first, but if he was not satisfied, he would be killing them as well. 

"I am Shaper Garven. What purpose brings you here?" 

"I am Serriya of Atlantis," replied one of them, doubtless the leader of this group of Rebels. "Do you know what happened to the people who were at this outpost?" 

Of course they wanted to know what had happened to their fellow Rebels. "They attacked me. I gave them the fate that all of you Rebels deserve -- death at the hands of the Shapers." 

Serriya frowned at him, looking confused. "I fear that you are mistaken, Shaper Garven. We are not rebels of any sort. You have come to a completely different world. There are no other Shapers here but you." 

What kind of nonsense was this? Another world? Inconceivable! He'd probably just wound up on some remote island somewhere that the Rebels were using as a base of operations. It wasn't like he intimately knew every stretch of geography in Terrestia. 

"If you are not Rebels, then prove it," Garven said. "Submit to the will of the Shapers, and you will be spared." 

It was not an unreasonable request. The Shapers ruled all the world. If they dared to defy him, then they should be killed along with the rest of their rebellious kind. 

* * *

Serriya frowned. That didn't sound good. This dimensional traveler was clearly less friendly than Scregor or Faruni had been. Submit to his will? Who did he think he was? She was an Atlantean! 

And yet, she didn't know what this man was capable of. If she gave the retort that was on the tip of her tongue, he would doubtless attack. His servants were formidable, and while Serriya believed that they had a good chance of victory against them, one or more of her companions might wind up hurt or dead. And there might be more of them inside or somewhere else nearby. It wasn't worth the risk. 

Diplomacy had never been Serriya's strong suit, but she'd been required to talk her way out of a few sticky situations in her day. Especially when they involved other Atlanteans, and the only weapons she could use against them were words, and not guns or blades. 

"I fear that I have not had the pleasure of meeting a Shaper before," Serriya replied. 

"Ah, of course," Garven said. "You must be in awe of your betters. You should consider yourself fortunate that a mere outsider such as yourself has had the privilege to speak with a Shaper of my power and station." 

"Let me at him," Scregor growled quietly, but Faruni put a hand on his shoulder and shook her head delicately. 

Serriya couldn't help but wonder if this wasn't how she must sound to others. Garven was so arrogant, looking down on "outsiders". Serriya realized she'd been doing the same thing, whether it was deserved or not. She found that she did not like being on the receiving end of that very much. 

"Yes, it is quite the privilege, Shaper Garven," Serriya said, feeling like she'd just swallowed a live eel as she said it. "I would not seek to attempt rebellion against the Shapers." 

"I'm glad to hear that you have more sense than those who were here displayed," Garven said, nodding to her. "Tell me, then, what do you know of the research they were conducting here? Delving into crystal technology normally reserved for the Shapers. Were they attempted to open portals to distant lands, or was that merely an accident?" 

Serriya's blood boiled to think of the fate of her brethren. For all that Shaper Garven looked and spoke like a man, he was no less of a monster than the darkspawn and demons that they had encountered before. 

"That they opened portals to other worlds was an accident," Serriya tried to explain. 

"There are no other worlds!" Garven snapped. 

Serriya sighed quietly. He wasn't listening. He wasn't going to listen. The stubborn man refused to see the truth before his eyes. It was like beating her head against a wall. 

"What happened to the portal, O Mighty Shaper Garven?" Serriya said in a strained tone. She just wanted to get to the point of this, and then figure out what they'd have to do from there. 

"It exploded shortly after my arrival here. Luckily, I was unharmed. I have been studying the fragments in order to learn more about this strange magic that these mere outsiders have somehow stumbled upon. I am certain that a true Shaper such as myself will be able to master their secrets in due time." 

So this portal had been destroyed as well. It was too much to hope for. This was probably what had happened to most of them, if not all of them, even the ones that hadn't had monsters coming out of them and killing everyone. 

"And what is this?" Garven asked, coming up to Faruni to examine her more closely. "Some new form of creation you Rebels have devised... or have you been foolishly delving into demon summoning again? One must never trust a demon. Their bargains may sound good, but they are never worthwhile." 

"There is wisdom in what you say," Faruni said. "But I am no demon, and I am not here to offer you any bargains. I am a draenei." 

"Shaper Garven," Serriya put in. "Perhaps we should go, and spread the word of your coming, so that the other... outsiders... might learn that a mighty Shaper is here now, and serve you as is your due." 

It wasn't her duty to slay someone for being unpleasant. Nor to attain vengeance against her fallen comrades. She had to protect and preserve what remained. Serriya dearly wanted to kill the man herself, and had more reason for it than Scregor. It wasn't a matter of being afraid. Never fear. Never cowardice. A good commander needed to know the difference between cowardice and due caution, and to know which fights were not worth it. Only a fool mistook suicidal recklessness for bravery or heroism. 

"You seek to walk away now?" Garven said, scoffing. "You fear the might of the Shapers, and believe you can escape from me that easily?" 

Serriya tensed. This might just turn into a battle after all. Enough was enough. "Shaper Garven," Serriya said firmly, dropping her submissive tone. "It is _not_ my problem that you refuse to listen to me. There are no Shapers here. You are alone. We're not Rebels. We have _never_ been under Shaper rule here. Listen to what I am saying. I do not wish to have to fight you, but we will defend ourselves if necessary." 

"Inconceivable," Garven muttered. 

"So tell me. Will it be a fight, or can we still speak peacefully, like civilized beings?" 

"I will give you one last warning," Garven said. "On your knees, now, or I will crush you beneath my heel." 

Serriya couldn't help but wonder if this was what it was like for all those barbarians she had killed for as little reason. But there was no help for it. She would not, could not, submit to this bastard, this Shaper. If it was to be a fight, then... "So be it." 

They were ready for a fight. Weapons in hand, they faced off against Shaper Garven and his forces. A dangerous battle, but they'd been left no choice in the matter. 

The thunder lizards attacked them with lightning, and the ogres lifted clubs and tried to batter at them. Serriya pulled out her lightblade and closed the distance, engaging the enemy as her squad covered her. 

A giant club clipped her on the side, sending her sprawling to the ground painfully even through her armor. Then, as quickly as the pain came, it was gone again, and a white light surrounded her for a moment, healing her injuries. 

"Thanks, Faruni," she said, slicing at the closest thunder lizard with her lightblade. 

"You are stronger than I had anticipated," Shaper Garven said. "What a bother." The robed man lifted his arms, and said, " _Mass Energize!_ " There was a high-pitched hum, and swirling bluish-white energy surrounded him and his creations. 

Suddenly, the creatures they were fighting seemed to be moving much more quickly, and a faint shimmering energy deflected some of their attacks. 

Faruni charged up and slammed into Garven with her shield, sending him flying into the wall of the outpost. Serriya and Scregor managed to finish off the remaining creations, leaving Faruni with her hoof on Garven's chest and her sword pointed to his throat. A glance over the battlefield revealed that the other Atlanteans were both down. 

"Good, let's finish him off and see if the others can still be healed," Serriya said. 

"It would be dishonorable to slay a helpless foe," Faruni replied. 

"Dishonorable? He was trying to kill us just a moment ago!" Serriya snapped. 

"And he's likely to try to kill us again, given the chance," Scregor added. 

"I will not submit to you Rebels," Garven growled. "If I must die, then I will die like a Shaper!" 

"For the last time, we are _not_ your thrice-damned Rebels!" Serriya yelled. "Leave him to me, Faruni, and go see if you can do anything for the wounded." 

"Very well," Faruni said, stepping back and going over to the two fallen soldiers. 

Serriya took her place over the prisoner, pointing her violent lightblade at him. "Give me one good reason why I should not simply strike you down here and now." 

"You Rebels will never win against the might of the Shaper empire!" Garven said. 

"You _still_ think we're Rebels?" Serriya said, sighing. She hated to kill someone who believed he was battling against something he was not. It was all a mistaken impression. But there was no way that she could convince him, and he was too dangerous to let live. 

"You fight me," Garven said. "You refuse to bow to the will of the Shapers. Of course you're Rebels." 

"Enough of this," Scregor said. "I don't care who or what you are. You are an _idiot_. And you've been shown far more chances for mercy than you deserved." 

Without another word from Serriya, the dwarf swung his axe down upon Shaper Garven and beheaded him in one swift blow. Serriya just shook her head and looked away. 

"The others are dead," Faruni said. 

"And so is that bastard mage," Scregor growled. 

"He deserved it," Serriya muttered. 

"Who are we to stay who deserves to live, and who deserves to die?" Faruni said. 

"It doesn't matter anymore, now, does it?" Scregor said. "He was dangerous, and might have attacked us again if he'd been allowed to live. He refused to listen to reason. I don't know if he was a bad person or not. That's not for me to say." 

"Are we to kill good people simply because they could not coexist with us?" Faruni said. "Is our own existence more important than theirs?" 

"Why are we even debating this?" Serriya snapped. "He killed everyone at this outpost, _and_ two of our own companions, and for what reason? Because they would not submit to the will of the Shapers? These Shapers sound like bloody tyrants..." She added more quietly, "No less than I was not so very long ago." 

Faruni sighed. "What's done is done. We cannot change the past. All we can do is hope for a better future, and choose a different path." 

Serriya went over and collected the crystals and weapons of her fallen comrades. More blood on her hands. More soldiers under her command that died for no good reason. She doubted that they would be the last, before this was all done with. 

They went into the outpost to scavenge what they could from it, including the crystals of the deceased Atlanteans there. Shaper Garven looked to have been in the process of converting the outpost into... _something_ , and all sorts of strange plant-like things were growing in the room amidst the shards of crystal. 

The fragments of the portal had been neatly collected and piled off in one side room. "Let's gather this up," Serriya said. "Pandora might be able to make some use of it." 

There was also some food, which they packed up as well. Then the three of them headed back down the mountainside toward where their vessel had been parked. 

"That bastard _was_ a mage, wasn't he?" Scregor said. 

"I believe so, yes," Faruni said. "He did cast some sort of spell, and he certainly dressed and spoke like one, at least." 

"What is this talk of 'mages'?" Serriya wondered. 

"Someone who can command magical powers," Faruni explained. "Much like you Atlanteans do with your crystals." 

"But a mage's powers are inherent to themselves," Scregor said. "They're trained to harness them, and they don't need anything special for it. Although lyrium can help, or something. I'm a dwarf, though, so I'm hardly an expert. Dwarves can't be mages, after all." 

"Lyrium?" Faruni asked. 

"You know," Scregor said, indicating the crystal around his neck. "Magic crystal stuff. Don't ask me for details." 

"People can do... things... without the aid of crystals?" Serriya said, raising an eyebrow. "What sorts of things?" 

"All sorts," Faruni said. "Throwing fireballs, turning people into sheep, summoning demons... Magic is a dangerous and versatile thing." 

"Wait. The mages in your world _turn people into sheep_?" Scregor said, looking at the draenei incredulously. 

"Only for a few minutes," Faruni said. 

"So where does this 'magic' come from, if they don't need crystals for it?" Serriya asked. 

Scregor shrugged. "Mages are born mages. I guess they draw their power from the Fade, or something. You're asking the wrong person for how it works." 

"Mages undergo years of training," Faruni said. "Although technically, it isn't just mages who can perform similar abilities without the need of objects like crystals. There are different forms of magic used by mages, druids, shamans, paladins, priests of different sorts..." 

Serriya rubbed her head. "When the portals opened, I'd already realized that there's more to the universe than I had ever considered might be possible. But now I'm starting to discover that the potential is wider than even that. It's enough to make a woman feel very small." 

"I know that feeling," Scregor said, chuckling. 

When they made it back to the Ar'ketak, Pandora was waiting for them. The civilians had been doing some foraging while they were out. They still had food left from the barbarian village Faruni and Scregor had contacted, but they didn't want to take the chance of running out, especially if they traveled into areas where it would be harder to obtain food. 

"Any luck?" Pandora asked, hugging Serriya as she arrived on deck. 

"I'm afraid not," Serriya said, planting a soft kiss on her cheek. "This portal was also destroyed, and monsters came through and killed everyone. We were able to kill them all, however. And I did bring you the pieces from this one." 

It was getting to the point where they could not spare the time to give everyone a proper burial. Serriya felt a bit guilty for it, but millions dead lay at the bottom of the sea as it was. At least that was a fitting final resting place for Atlanteans. Having to cover them in dirt just felt wrong. 

"Maybe the next one will be intact," Pandora said. "I'll work on these pieces and see what I can do. I may still be able to make repairs if we find one that isn't too badly damaged, or failing all else, build a new one." 

"And the ones we've encountered so far have all had problems with monsters," Serriya said. "And we're still a ways away from the closest one you mentioned that wasn't having any issues." 

"What sort of things came out of this one?" Pandora asked. "What... what killed the other Atlanteans?" 

"A monster in the shape of a man," Serria said. 

Serriya stared off in the general direction of the outpost for a few moments before going into the control room to leave this place behind. She could not shake the thought of wondering how many barbarians had thought of _her_ as the monster. It was not a thought she liked. Not in the least.


	5. A Rogue's Flight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter involves Planescape.

Zerek darted his way through the streets of Sigil, glancing back for a moment as he rounded a bend. He chuckled softly to himself -- they'd never catch him now. He'd give these fiends the laugh. 

"I'll get you!" growled an abishai, emerging from a side alley. 

For a moment, Zerek had thought he was going to get away, and then he was surrounded, fiends pressing in on all sides. Zerek darted the other way, tail flicking behind him as he turned quickly. Leave it to him to have managed to piss off both the devils and the demons at the same time. 

He felt like such a berk to get himself into such a situation when he really should know better. He'd peeled them both, cheated them and played them for fools. Was it worth the jink to be running around the Cage like this, with all of these fiends out for his hide? At this rate they'd put him in the dead-book for sure. But it was a _lot_ of jink. 

Then, as he turned another corner to evade his pursuers, he saw a light ahead, swirling red in the shadows. A portal, to get him out of the Cage? He didn't care where it went. Anywhere had to better than here right now. What was the worst thing that could happen? Oh, he might wind up hipped in the Lower Planes. That seemed pretty likely as it was. 

Zerek zipped through the portal, and emerged someplace else. Wherever this place was, it certainly wasn't the Cage anymore. There were a bunch of humans, rattling their bone-boxes over sparkles. 

"Is that a monster? One of the creatures we were warned about?" 

"Nah, I'm just a tiefling," said Zerek. "I'm perfectly harmless." He glanced back to see that the portal was rippling again, and a black abishai was emerging from it. " _Those_ are monsters, though!" 

He beat it out of there, running for the door and leaving the humans behind to deal with whatever was coming out of their portal. It certainly wasn't _his_ problem. 

Once out of the building, he practically staggered at the sight beyond. Clear, blue sky, stretching out forever. Clean, crisp air. Rolling, forested mountains. Had that portal landed him on some prime world? Well, that was fine by him, so long as he could keep his skin firmly on his body. Sigil might be his home, but survival was infinitely more important. 

Time to give these fiends the laugh and hide out somewhere in this vast, bright wilderness. Maybe the primes could do him a favor and take care of some of them for him. More likely, they'd just get themselves penned in the dead-book, but that wasn't his problem. 

* * *

"The next outpost should be somewhere around here," Serriya said, peering off at the landscape. She didn't have high hopes that they would find anything good here, either, but they had to check. 

"There," Faruni said, pointing off. "I see it." 

Serriya steered the Ar'ketak closer and brought it down for a landing nearby. There didn't appear to be anything flying around in the air here, or any sign of monsters in the vicinity. But that didn't necessarily mean much. 

"We should go with you, captain," Nabek said. 

Serriya shook her head. "I need you two to stay behind and guard the ship. Faruni and Scregor will come with me." 

"Yes, sir," Nabek said. 

Serriya didn't feel good heading into possible danger with just the three of them, but these two had proven themselves well in combat. Between Faruni's Light powers and Scregor's uncannily powerful weapons and armor, they tended to fare better than her own people, strangely enough. Their skill and strength had come as quite a surprise to her. 

Near the outpost, as was common, there was another barbarian village. The most expedient way to this outpost from their angle of approach was to go right through the village. 

As the three of them got close to the village, however, they spotted several monsters terrorizing the barbarians. They reminded Serriya of the demons that they'd encountered when they met Faruni. Huge, winged creatures with reptilian tails, covered in black scales. There were broken and bloody corpses laying at their feet, and some of the barbarians were desperately trying to fight them off with wooden spears. 

"Hah!" said one of the monsters. "You think you're going to hurt us with _that_? You need magical weapons to injure us!" 

"Sounds like our cue," Scregor said, grinning and bringing out his axe. 

"Perish in the name of the Holy Light, foul demons!" Faruni said, starting to glow as she charged at them with her sword and shield. 

"We're _devils_ , not demons. Get your fiends straight, you addle-coved paladin!" 

The barbarians' spears hadn't been making any nick in the monsters' scales, but apparently Faruni's sword and Scregor's axe qualified as magic weapons, as did Serriya's lightblade, for some reason. They cut down the devils after a bit of a rough fight, and Faruni healed their wounds afterward. 

"Thank you for saving us," said one grateful barbarian, bowing low before them. 

Serriya stared for a few moments before realizing that they _had_ actually saved these barbarians. She hadn't really been thinking about it. It wasn't like she generally tended to care what happened to barbarians, but killing monsters was starting to become something of a habit. And when Scregor and Faruni attacked something, it would be prudent to follow suit, generally. They were smart enough not to start a fight without good reason. 

"Were there any more of these creatures?" Serriya asked. 

"No, just those three." 

"Was anyone else hurt?" Faruni asked. 

A few of the barbarians who had received non-fatal injuries stepped forward, and Faruni healed their wounds as well. 

"Is there anything we can do for you in exchange for your assistance?" 

"We could use some provisions, if you have a little food to spare," Faruni said gently. 

"Of course, of course. We'll bring some for you immediately." 

"We'll be back here shortly to pick them up," Faruni said. "We need to investigate the Atlantean outpost to the east first." 

The three of them continued on toward the outpost. Hopefully there wouldn't be any more monsters nearby, but Serriya kept her guard up just in case. She was glad to have Faruni around sometimes. Keeping food on hand was a good idea, even if they had two fewer mouths to feed now. And she imagined that the devils had probably killed everyone in the outpost. 

They arrived at the outpost after a short walk, and stepped inside. Scorch marks and shattered crystals marred the room, blood stains marked the floor, and the mutilated bodies of a handful of Atlanteans lay there. 

"Another portal destroyed," Faruni said, looking around the room. She approached one of the bodies and murmured, "Be at peace now, in the name of the Light." 

Serriya might be more offended over Faruni imposing her own people's beliefs upon Atlanteans if it weren't for the indisputable proof that this Holy Light actually existed in some way or another. She'd seen far too much healing and holy fire to argue that over whether or not it was real. Many barbarians she'd fought had prayed for the aid of their gods, and their prayers fell on deaf ears as Serriya cut them down regardless. Maybe the fall of Atlantis was actually the wrath of a thousand angry barbarian gods who'd decided that they'd finally had enough. But she doubted it. 

Quietly, Serriya went over and collected their crystals and anything else that might be of use, and gathered up some of the larger fragments of the portal ring for Pandora to work with. After grabbing anything that might be the least bit useful, the three of them headed out again. 

Back at the village, the barbarians had brought forth some food for them. "You seem to be carrying a lot already." 

"Our ship is not far from here," Faruni said. "Would you be willing to help bring it there, if it is not too much trouble?" 

"Of course." 

Some of the barbarians helped bring food back to where the Ar'ketak was parked. Serriya thought they should be good for food for a while now, at least. If it weren't for the deaths and the fact that they hadn't found an intact portal yet, she'd think this whole expedition were going pretty well. 

"I'm surprised that you actually asked them for food, Faruni," Scregor said. 

"Why is that?" Faruni asked. 

"You struck me as a big goody-goody for that." 

Faruni snorted softly. "A true paladin needs no reward in order to do a good deed. However, I am a practical one. I will not refuse a reward if offered, nor will I be afraid to ask for necessary supplies. Being good does not require starving." 

"Good. I'm not in the business of refusing rewards myself. Although considering these so-called barbarians, I have to wonder if any of them even know what gold _is_ , never mind how to work it." 

"Ah, the renowned greed of dwarves," Faruni drawled. 

Scregor snorted softly, but made no retort to that comment. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to situate myself firmly belowdecks before we take off. The last thing I need to see before I eat is the sky all around me." 

* * *

Faruni crept through the hold. There it was again. A soft jangling sound? How strange. She was certain that she was not merely hearing things. 

"I know you are here," Faruni said gently. "You can come out any time now. I do not intend to harm you." 

There came a soft shuffling sound, and a young boy emerged from a hiding spot behind some crates. He couldn't be older than fourteen or fifteen, she thought. But while he looked mostly human, he also had little nubby goat-like horns on his head, and a swishing tail curled out from behind him. 

"Are you a demon or a devil?" he asked, looking up at her defiantly. "I want to call you by the proper term when I tell you to go to hell." 

"I am neither," Faruni replied. "I am a draenei." 

The strange boy cocked his head at her. "Is that some new kind of fiend I've never heard of?" 

"I am not a fiend," Faruni protested. "In fact, I am a paladin!" 

"A _paladin_? Fancy that. Well, I'm not sure which would be worse for me, a fiend or a paladin." 

"Why?" Faruni asked. 

"Well, the last fiends I spotted were trying to put me in the dead-book for peeling them good for a bunch of jink." 

Faruni had to wonder if the translation enchantments on the crystals were starting to fade. She could understand the words, most of them at least, but what the boy said still made no sense. 

"You can be assured that so long as you intend no harm upon this ship or those upon it, then I will not have any cause to bring any harm upon you." 

"That's good to hear. My name's Zerek, by the way. So you're not going to tell me to pike it and throw me off the ship?" 

"Certainly not. My name is Faruni. Welcome aboard. I shall need to notify the captain of your presence. But so long as you have no ill intentions, then I see no issue with you remaining with us." 

"Even though I'm a tiefling?" 

"I do not know where you are from nor what a tiefling might be," Faruni replied. 

"Well, okay then. So I can come out?" 

"Feel free to go where you like. And we have plenty of food for the moment, so do not fret over that, either. Although if you have any particular skills that might be of aid to this expedition, then you should speak with the captain about that." 

"Like what?" Zerek asked. 

"You seem a bit young, but perhaps you can fight?" Faruni suggested. "Or maybe you are good at stealth and scouting?" 

Zerek shifted uneasily. "I suppose I can fight a bit. I can nick a rube with a chiv pretty good." 

Faruni looked at him appraisingly. She suspected that there was something that he was keeping a secret. He did seem the type of person... "Zerek, tell me. Are you a rogue?" 

"Oh, surely not! I'd never do anything underhanded or illegal, no cross-trading for me, no sir." 

"I see," Faruni drawled. "Well, that would be a pity. The skills of a rogue can be very useful at times." 

"Oh? Like what?" 

"Picking locks, disarming traps. Recognizing dangers that others might miss. I would venture to guess that there may even be circumstances in which eavesdropping or even outright theft would be the most prudent course of action." 

"Er. Well, I suppose they might be useful. Not that I would know, of course." 

"A pity," Faruni said, looking off absently. "I am fighting with warriors who know nothing of any sort of magic or specialized skills. A rogue would be a welcome addition to our party. But if you lack any skills of that nature, then I suppose you might just remain with the ship and help forage for food while the rest of us are out." 

"Well..." Zerek said, shifting, his eyes darting this way and that. 

"Well?" 

"I suppose, when you put it that way..." Zerek said, giving a small grin. 

"Oh, are you a rogue after all? Well, in that case, that would be most excellent news." 

Faruni would much rather work with rogues than warlocks, at least. They might have a rather loose view of law and order, but at least they didn't _consort with demons_. And even still, she had known warlocks who were surprisingly noble. 

"Come, then. Let us introduce you to the captain. I am certain that she will be glad to meet you." 

Faruni thought that they could use all the help that they could get at this point. She led the tiefling lad -- whatever a tiefling might be -- out of the hold and up top. Serriya was leaning against the railing at the prow of the airship, carefully watching the landscape drift by far below. 

"Who is this?" Serriya said, raising an eyebrow as she turned to examine their latest addition to the crew. 

"His name is Zerek," Faruni said. "He is a tiefling, and he says he has specialized skills as well as capability for combat." 

"I'm surprised that you'd suggest that we bring this child along to battle," Serriya said. 

"Hey, I'm as good a basher as any. I can hold my own in a fight," Zerek protested. "And if I can nab some jink along the way, so much the better. I don't mind banging around on the prime for a bit, even if I've been hipped out here." 

Serriya blinked at him. "Is the translation malfunctioning? Maybe I should have Pandora take a look at it..." 

"I was wondering that myself," Faruni said. "At least it is not restricted to me. Although it appears to be only having issues with the way Zerek speaks." 

"You got a problem with my cant?" Zerek said. "You not canny enough to get it into your brain-box, prime?" 

"Hmm," Faruni said. "Perhaps it is not so much that the translator is having difficulties, but that he is still using words which have meaning. He is simply using unusual words or putting them together in peculiar ways." 

"You think you can scan that?" Zerek went on. "You want to tumble to the cant of the planes? Wigwag with the cutters? Rattle your bone-box with the bloods?" 

"Barbarians," Serriya muttered, looking away. 

"Clueless berks," Zerek said, snorting. 

Faruni might not be certain of what he meant by half of what he said, but she could comprehend an insult when she heard it. "Zerek. Be polite, please. Or someone might just tell you to pike it and throw you off the ship." She gestured vaguely at the long drop. 

Zerek looked at her for a few moments, and then laughed aloud. "For a paladin, you're alright, cutter." 

* * *

Zerek sat down in the mess hall to eat his fill. It was nice not to have to hide. Maybe stowing away had been completely unnecessary. And the ship was as good a place as any to bang around for the moment. A flying kip was still a kip, after all, and the beds were comfortable and the food was good, especially compared to what he was used to in the Cage. No spiced ratsies, but real fruits and meats. Still, all that jink, and nobody around here really cared much about it. Ah, well. At least his new crewmates weren't going to try to nick it from him. 

Speaking of which, one of the humans -- Atlanteans, they apparently called themselves -- sat herself down across from him and smiled at him brightly. Funny how they didn't seem to treat him with the least bit of distrust. They were open and welcoming. Maybe they really _didn't_ have any idea what a tiefling was. They were such clueless primes, really. But he couldn't complain. 

"Hello, Zerek. My name is Pandora. Welcome to our humble ship." 

Zerek grunted a greeting to her in between mouthfuls of food. 

"I was hoping maybe you could tell me a bit about where you're from." 

"Sure, why not?" Zerek said, shrugging. "What do you want to know?" 

"Are you from a big city?" Pandora asked. 

"Heh. Berk, I'm from _the_ city. Sigil, the Cage, the City of Doors." 

"Oh, I see. What was it like there?" 

Zerek chuckled. "I could give you a screed from here until we're both in the dead-book about the Cage, and you'd still not really know the dark of it." 

Pandora frowned a little, and fingered the crystal around her neck. "I'm pretty sure the crystals are still translating properly... but I didn't understand half of what you said." 

"You'd be marked for a clueless outsider in a minute, in Sigil," Zerek said, smirking. "And I'll bet you'd be staring up in wonder while your pockets get emptied before you knew it." 

"And I'll bet it's just as bad as my own home, Orzammar," said the dwarf, hauling a chair up to the table and plopping himself down in it. "The name's Scregor." 

"In the Hive, the worst part of Sigil, the best lines of work are selling deaders to the Dustmen, and whoring." 

"In the best part of Orzammar, everyone backstabs each other for even the slightest perceived benefit." 

"Sigil might randomly rearrange itself, streets moving around, and if you're a really unlucky sod, you might wind up trapped in a building when the door gets bricked up, and starve to death." 

"In Orzammar, the darkspawn might break through at any moment and kill everyone or turn them into monstrosities." 

"Are we trying to compare whose city is best, or worst?" Zerek said, smirking. 

Pandora stared at the two of them. "Um... so... Why is Sigil called 'the Cage'?" 

"Because it's like a birdcage, you see." 

"Birdcage?" Scregor said, looking at him blankly. 

"A prison," Zerek said. "The City of Doors, and all the doors are locked, and you might never find the right key. Guess I was lucky, huh? I make it sound like it's a bad place to be, but I liked it there. A blood can really get ahead in the Cage." 

"In Orzammar, the ale tastes like dirt. Because they put dirt in it." 

"In Sigil, the bub tastes like piss, because--" 

"Guys!" Pandora snapped. 

"Sorry," Zerek said, smirking. 

"So, kid, you don't look like much of a fighter. What's this Faruni was telling me about you being a valuable asset to the team? And what 'special skills' was she talking about?" 

"Oh, you know. Like picking locks and disarming traps." 

Scregor grunted and pinned him with a hard look. "Oh, you're one of _those_ sorts, are you? Just like a thieving duster, huh?" 

"I am not a Dustman," Zerek protested. "I'm an Indep. Never thought much of most of Sigil's factions." 

"I note you're not protesting the thieving bit," Scregor said. 

"A body's got to make a living somehow." 

So they weren't all quite as open-minded and accepting as Faruni. Zerek found it no end of hilarious that it was the paladin who was most tolerant of his unique skill set. No matter. Serriya and Scregor would be glad for him the first time he saved their skins. Then they'd see who the barbarian, who the thief was. 

"If you try to steal from me, I'll chop your tail off," Scregor said, narrowing his eyes. 

"I wouldn't dream of it," Zerek assured him. "How barmy do you think I am? It's not like I peeled a baatezu _and_ a tanar'ri and then ran for my life. What berk would want to pike off anyone so dangerous?" 

Scregor looked at Pandora oddly. "Are the magic translators still working?" 

"I've been getting that a lot here," Zerek said, snickering softly. "Not that you can talk. Duster." 

"Berk," Scregor retorted. 

Zerek chuckled in amusement, then turned to Pandora. "So why do you bashers all wear those sparkles around your necks? They magic or something?" 

"Oh... Well, it used to be that only Atlanteans wore them. But with Atlantis gone and a number of people from other worlds showing up, we've become a little more inclusive in our group. Here, I've got one for you." 

She pulled another crystal pendant out from a pocket and handed it over to him. Zerek peered at it closely. It felt a little warm to the touch and seemed to be glowing faintly even now. He made no move to put it on just yet. 

"So what do they do?" 

"Translation, for one thing," Pandora said. "For a long time, they gave us health and longevity. But I am uncertain whether that will last, with the primary source of their power removed. Well, no matter. We'll deal with it somehow." 

That didn't sound bad. Zerek was still wary of it, though. But these others didn't seem to be suffering any ill effects from it. After a few more minutes of staring at the crystal, he slipped the thin chain on around his neck. So did this make him an _official_ member of the crew, now? 

And he still couldn't believe that nobody even asked or wondered what a tiefling was. Maybe having that draenei around had already desensitized them to things that looked a little like fiends. Well, if he didn't have to admit that his father was from the Lower Planes, so much the better.


	6. Shepherds and Free Men

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter involves Mass Effect, Half-Life, and Stargate.

Megan Shepard watched the husks moving through the sight of her scope. She could snipe them easily from here, but where were they going? They seemed to be moving with a worrying purpose. 

This had all mainly just been target practice, mopping up some leftovers after the defeat of Saren and Sovereign. She'd found a batch of husks out on this remote planet, and thought to make quick work of them. 

Shepard popped off a couple shots, killing a couple of husks, before descending from the hilltop and heading in for a closer look. Something was up here, and it was more than just a cluster of technologically reanimated corpses. 

"Shepard here. I've made contact with the enemy, but the husks seem to be behaving strangely. I'm going in for a closer look." 

"Be careful," came Liara's voice over the comm. 

Shepard chuckled softly. "I'm always careful, Liara." 

"That's what I'm worried about." 

"You worry too much," Shepard replied. "I'll be back in time for dinner." 

Shepard grinned to herself before continuing on. She liked to flirt with Liara, although there was nothing serious between them. Asari might be mono-gendered and all, but that gender was still definitely female. Shepard really would prefer a man. And not one like Kaidan, who she half suspected was actually gay. 

She didn't think there'd be any real problems on the planet. It was just husks, after all. But what if there actually _was_ something really dangerous here? Maybe she shouldn't have come by herself after all. 

As she followed the husks down into the rocky gorge, she spotted a strange light. Something red and swirling, and the husks were disappearing into it. 

"There's some sort of anomaly down here. The husks are... going through it? I'm going to check it out." 

"Shepard, wait--" Liara began. 

"I'll be fine," Shepard assured her as she approached the whirling disc of fire. 

"Shepard! Shepard! _Megan!_ " Liara shrieked over the comm as Shepard stepped through. 

After a moment of disorientation, Shepard found herself someplace else. What was this, some Prothean ruin or something? No, not a ruin, there were corpses here, human, fresh. And one of the husks was still stumbling around the room. Quickly, she pulled out her pistol and shot at it, then punched it until it stopped moving. 

"Looks like I'm in some sort of building," Shepard said into the comm. 

She went over to examine one of the bodies. Human, to be sure, with dark skin and white hair, as well as some sort of blue crystal around the neck. Who were these people? Were they part of the group of pirates who they'd found turned into husks out on this barely-habitable rock? 

"There's bodies here. Human. The husks got to them first, it seems. What were they doing out here? This place almost seems Prothean. Maybe you should come down here, Liara. You'd be able to tell." 

There came no reply over the comm. Strange. Maybe that anomaly had teleported her deep underground or something. No, something wasn't right. She just realized that the gravity on this planet seemed slightly heavier than where she'd been. How odd. She poked her head outside of the doorway. Sure enough, there were blue skies, a lush green forest, a shining sun. If she didn't know better, she'd almost think it looked like Earth. 

Shepard went back inside and stepped through the portal again. "Liara, that anomaly goes to another planet. I'm not sure where. Earth-like. I've got to take care of the husks that got through, though. They've already killed several people. I'll get back to you in a bit." 

"Shepard, we should come with you," Liara protested. 

"Come down if you want," Shepard said. "You might want to take a look at this place. I don't know if it's Prothean or not. But I'm going on ahead to take out the husks. Catch up with me there." 

"Alright," Liara said. "Kaidan and I are coming down." 

Shepard groaned softly as she stepped back through the portal. That would be why she'd come alone. Because if she brought Liara, then Kaidan would insist upon coming. And she didn't want to admit it aloud, because it would be unprofessional, but she didn't like spending time around Kaidan if she could possibly help it. But Wrex had gone off to Tuchanka, and Tali had returned to the Migrant Fleet, and Garrus had gone off to... do something or other somewhere, which meant that Kaidan thought that it was his duty to step up and pick up the slack. 

Standing in the doorway to the strange building, Shepard brought up her sniper rifle and peered out through the scope. The husks were stumbling down the countryside, and the building had been situated on top of a hill. Target practice. There was only a handful of them, so she started popping them off one by one, neatly headshotting most of them. 

Once that was done, she stepped back inside and examined the panels. Nothing she was particularly familiar with, but maybe there was a comm here. Shepard poked around with the controls a bit, and found one that she thought was a comm. 

"How do you work this? Is this thing on?" 

A hologram shimmered into view above the crystal, showing a living woman who looked much like the corpses around the room. "I'm reading you. Who is this?" 

"I'm Commander Shepard. I just took out a bunch of husks that had come through this... whatever this is. Where am I, anyway?" 

"We're grateful for your assistance. As for where... that's a bit complicated. I don't have the time to explain right now, though. There are portals open all over this world, and monsters rampaging through many of them. I don't know if there's heroes like you near all of them to stop them, though." 

That didn't sound good. It seems that whoever these people might be, they were experimenting with some sort of portal technology, and it had gone horribly wrong in some way. They definitely needed a hand here. 

"Well, the husks should be taken care of, at least," Shepard replied. "We'll see what we can do to help." 

"Why?" another image popped into view suddenly. 

"Huh?" Shepard wondered. 

"Why are you going out of your way to help us? I could ask this of you, Scregor, too. This isn't your home. You have no stake in what happens here. You're from somewhere else entirely. You're from some other world. You could just step back through the portal and go home. Why risk yourselves to help us?" 

Shepard started incredulously at the woman's image through the communicator for a moment. As if Shepard could just walk away when there were people in trouble? But it was understandable, perhaps. These people didn't sound like they'd even realized other planets existed until now, even if they did look more or less human. 

"Because..." Shepard replied firmly. "That's what I _do_." She turned and walked out the door. 

Liara and Kaidan should be arriving soon. For the moment, she'd scope out the area and make sure there weren't anymore husks or other hostiles in the vicinity. 

As she looked about, there came a rumbling sound from inside the building. Could that be her companions coming through? But no, when she looked back inside, the metallic ring was in pieces on the floor, and the swirling anomaly that had brought her here was gone. 

"Damn it," Shepard uttered. She hoped that Liara was alright, but it appeared that the others would not be joining her. She'd just have to find another way off this planet. That might be difficult if these people were a pre-spaceflight culture, but perhaps one of these portals they were apparently working on could be repaired. 

No help for it now, at any rate. She went back outside to look around some more. Near the building, she found a handful of strange fish-shaped things that looked vaguely like some sort of aircraft, perhaps. Shepard went over to one of them and tried to figure out how to get it started. This technology wasn't quite like anything she was used to. 

On a hunch, she wondered if it might require one of those crystals that she'd seen around all of the corpses' necks. Shepard went back into the building and gathered up five of them from the bodies, and then returned to the landing field. That was it! The crystal around her neck glowed for a moment, and the aircraft lifted off of the ground. 

Shepard struggled with the controls, trying to figure out how to steer the contraption. It spun around in a tight loop, skidded across the ground, bounced back into the air again, and then went crashing into a rocky cliff face. 

Well, that was embarrassing. Shepard climbed out of the wrecked craft, thankful that she'd only taken some bruises from the attempt. That could have gone better. 

Shepard went back up the hill again to the airfield and picked another craft. She'd be more careful with this one, really. This one lifted unsteadily into the air, and she eased it off away from the outpost. Shepard rather wished that there were a flight simulator or something that she could practice with. It would be doubly embarrassing if her friends ever found out where she'd ended up, only to discover that she'd died for such a stupid reason. That thought was enough to practically shame her into competency. 

After doing some aerial surveillance, Shepard realized that this planet was mostly wilderness. There were a few spots that looked like they might be primitive villages of some sort, but it was a long, long way from civilization, she thought. There had to be something, though. Someone had to have built that outpost, and the portals that the woman mentioned. Leave it to Shepard to be stranded in the middle of nowhere on a planet in the middle of nowhere. 

Shepard landed the craft again and went back into the outpost to look around. She'd need supplies if she was going to get anywhere. Ah, there was food in here. She packed that up and shoved it into the back of her flying vehicle, hoping that life on this planet weren't based on dextro-amino acids. If it were, well, she'd be dead soon enough anyway due to not being able to eat the food. 

* * *

The next outpost was three days' flight away, and Shepard stumbled upon it almost by accident. She wondered if something horrible had happened here as well. The people in the last place had seemed completely unprepared for even a handful of husks. 

Shepard brought the craft down nearby and climbed out to take a look around. Near the outpost, there were bodies piled on the ground of something that looked like some sort of giant insects, as well as another handful of the local humanoids, laid out and stripped of their crystals and any weapons they might have been carrying. 

If there were problems with "monsters" here, perhaps they were already taken care of. Still, Shepard was wary. She didn't survive this long by being reckless _all_ the time. 

Inside the building, there was a human man wearing a protective suit of some sort and glasses, sitting in the middle of the floor and examining the remnants of the equipment in the room. As she came in, he jumped up in alarm and pointed a gun at her. 

Shepard reflexively pointed her own pistol back at him. "Easy there. I'm not looking for a fight." 

The man grunted and looked at her for a moment longer before saying, "You'd be the first friendly face I've seen in a while, then." He slowly lowered his gun, and Shepard put her own pistol away. 

"I'm Commander Megan Shepard, Systems Alliance, and Spectre for the Citadel Council. It's good to see another human here. After my squad didn't make it through the portal, I thought I was stranded by myself out here." 

"Dr. Gordon Freeman." He went back to examining the crystal fragments. 

"Trying to figure out how to put it back together?" Shepard asked. 

Dr. Freeman nodded. 

"Found out anything yet?" 

He shook his head. "Not yet." 

"Do you have any idea what planet we're on?" 

"I would have thought it was Earth, but it looks much too nice for that." 

Shepard smirked. "Yeah, you can say that again. All this pristine, untouched wilderness. Earth hasn't looked like this in a thousand years or more." 

"And the lack of alien invaders," Dr. Freeman added. 

Shepard wondered if he was one of those bigoted human-centric people who wanted to put humanity ahead of everyone else, at any cost. "You don't like aliens?" 

"Only when they're trying to kill me. Don't get me wrong, the Vorts turned out to be alright." 

Now Shepard was just confused. "Vorts?" 

"You know. The Vortigaunts." 

"I'm afraid I _don't_ know," Shepard said, frowning. "What about the asari? Salarians? Turians?" 

Freeman stared at her for a long moment. "I don't know what those are, either." 

"What, have you been hiding under a rock for the last few decades?" 

"Commander Shepard, tell me what the place you are from was like." 

"Well, let's see. I was raised on the colony world of Mindoir. It was a lovely place, but it was raided by batarian slavers when I was sixteen, who slaughtered or captured nearly everyone. I was one of the lucky ones. I got rescued by an Alliance patrol." 

"You said you were a Spectre for the Citadel Council. Tell me about that." 

"The first human Spectre. They were reluctant to give it to me, since Spectres are above the law, the hands of the Council themselves. They didn't think humans were ready for that sort of position. But they needed me to go after a rogue Spectre, a turian named Saren." 

"I see," Dr. Freeman said thoughtfully. "And tell me, what is Earth like?" 

"What kind of a question is that? You're from Earth yourself, aren't you?" 

"I have a feeling that we're not from the same Earth." 

Shepard blinked at him in confusion. "What are you talking about? There's only one Earth." 

Dr. Freeman looked at her very patiently, and said as though speaking to a student, "Are you familiar with the concept of alternate universes?" 

"What? Don't be ridiculous. That sort of thing only happens in science fiction." 

Freeman snorted softly. "Don't discount 'science fiction'. The Earth _I'm_ familiar with was taken over by aliens from another dimension." 

"W--What?" Shepard stammered. 

"Also, I'm a theoretical physicist specializing in dimensional travel. I do know what I'm talking about." 

"Alright, alright, I'll take your word for it." 

So, he was an egghead, then. That certainly had its place. It would explain why he was inspecting the portal remnants so closely. But then, who killed those aliens whose corpses she'd seen outside? He clearly wasn't just a scientist. 

"I'd thought you might have been one of the natives to this dimension," Dr. Freeman said. "But you say you're from another one entirely?" 

"Apparently. There was a woman over the comm who said that portals had opened up all over the world to different places. Do you have any idea where we are?" 

"No more than you do, I'm afraid. You spoke with one of the natives?" 

Shepard nodded. "Two of them, in fact, briefly at least. They didn't explain much, though." 

"There might still be other survivors somewhere. One of them might know more about how these portals work. Without more information on them, it might be some while before I can figure it out enough to make repairs and get us home, as badly damaged as they are. Assuming, of course, that you even want to go home." 

"Of course I do!" Shepard retorted. "Don't you?" 

"You haven't seen my home. And they all expected me to be a hero, fix everything and save everyone." Dr. Freeman snorted softly. "I fought because I had no choice. Given the choice, I'm not going to go back there." 

"Not even to save everyone?" 

"Not unless I can bring in an actual army to do it with, at least. They expected me to do it all myself." 

"That sounds familiar," Shepard said, smirking. 

"Hmm," Dr. Freeman said thoughtfully. "I'd taken this place for an isolated research outpost. You say there were portals like this all over the world? Maybe there's survivors somewhere. Or one of them might even be still intact, or not as badly damaged." 

"It's as good a plan as any," Shepard said. "I've got a flying craft. It's controlled by those crystals the natives were wearing around their necks." 

"That'll save some time walking. Just tell me that it doesn't crash or flip over constantly." 

Shepard looked away sheepishly. "It might _not_ crash." 

* * *

Gordon was dubious about flying in the craft with Commander Shepard. For one thing, it was clearly intended to be a single seater, and after they'd packed in as much food as it could hold, there wasn't much room left for a passenger. 

"Were there any others where you found this one?" Gordon asked. 

"Yeah, but that's three days back that-a-way." 

"You didn't mention that this thing was so small." 

Shepard snorted. "Would you prefer to walk?" 

"No," Gordon replied with a smirk. 

"Although you could just sit on my lap." 

"Shepard!" Gordon replied, eyes widening in surprise that the woman would suggest such a thing. 

"What?" Shepard said innocently. "You know, I could just find a spot to tie you to the thing." 

"You could sit on _my_ lap instead," Gordon suggested, smirking in vague amusement. Shepard was a very strange woman. 

"Or I could just leave you here." 

"And how do you plan to get home again without me?" 

Shepard sighed. "I'll... find one of the native scientists. Maybe. Bah, forget it, come on and get in here." 

The two of them managed to squeeze in side by side. That might have been more romantic, or something, if both of them weren't wearing armor. It didn't help that between the two of them, they were carrying enough weapons to outfit a small army. Gordon had to wonder if she were half as good in a fight as Alyx were. He might have even dated Alyx, under other circumstances, but there was just something a little creepy about dating someone twenty years younger than him. Even if he weren't actually twenty years older. Rephrase that. Dating someone he'd met when she was a baby. 

They arrived at the next outpost a few days later, and Shepard put the fish-shaped craft down just outside. The two of them climbed out and pulled out weapons. Gordon had his own guns as well, but he was currently wielding an energy pistol taken from one of the natives. 

"Let's check this place out," Shepard said. 

There was a good deal of exterior damage on this outpost, almost like it had been half eaten by something. A skittering sound came from inside, and a strange insect-like creature that appeared to be made of small metal blocks came out and crawled out of the door. A less paranoid person might think that it looked like a harmless toy. 

Gordon reflexively shot at it. His beam weapon struck the robotic insect, played along its surface for a moment, and then the energy dissipated, leaving it unharmed. 

"Dr. Freeman!" Shepard snapped. 

"What?" Gordon said. 

"Why'd you shoot at it?" 

"I've gotten into the habit of shooting anything that scurries and makes weird sounds." 

Shepard paused for a moment and said, "I suppose there's a point to that. But it doesn't appear to have done anything to it." 

"More coming," Gordon warned. 

A number more of the creatures swarmed out from the building and started scuttling across the ground toward them. Shepard popped off several shots with her pistol, blowing several of them to pieces. 

"Projectile weapons seem to work, though," Shepard commented. 

Gordon brought out his submachine gun and opened fire on the robotic bugs. They only swarmed out in greater numbers, however, forcing the two of them to retreat. The insects crawled over their aircraft and seemed to begin to _eat_ it. 

"Damn it," Shepard muttered. 

"They're consuming raw materials to create more of themselves," Gordon said. 

"I can _see_ that!" 

Gordon's SMG ran out of ammo, so he pulled out his assault rifle and shot at them until that ran out of ammo. Then he brought out his shotgun until that ran out of ammo, and then magnum until that ran out of ammo. 

As he started to bring out his rocket launcher, Shepard said, "You are _not_ shooting a rocket launcher at this range." 

"Oh, fine," Gordon said, putting that away and pulling out his crowbar. 

"A crowbar? Seriously?" 

"Hey, don't dis the crowbar!" 

Gordon dove into the swarm of replicating robots and proceeded to smash them into unrecognizable bits with a fervor. Shepard had taken a few steps back, and was firing at the little machines with unerring accuracy with her sniper rifle. Between them, eventually everything within sight stopped moving. 

"How is it that you haven't run out of ammo yet?" Gordon asked. 

"Ammo?" Shepard said. "That's not likely anytime soon. My guns operate by shaving a tiny amount of material off of a block of metal inside of them, accelerating it to high velocities, and propelling it toward its target with mass effect fields." 

Gordon blinked at her. "Nice." He looked at his empty weapons. "I wish my guns did that." 

"Why didn't you say so?" Shepard handed him her shotgun. "I don't really use that one much. You can use it." 

A replicator near the door to the building started moving. Gordon pointed his new shotgun at it and fired, blowing it to smithereens. "Thanks." He grinned broadly. 

Gordon gathered up all of his empty weapons, and unceremoniously dumped them in a pile near the corpses. He kept the crowbar and gravity gun, though. Shepard was poking her head into the building to make sure that they'd actually gotten _all_ of the pernicious little things. 

After shooting at a few more, Shepard said, "I don't see anymore." 

"Keep an ear out just in case," Gordon said. "At least they don't leap out of nowhere and inject you with a neurotoxin." 

"Yeah, but they ate our fish. And most of the outpost." 

"Only part of the fish. I might still be able to repair it." Gordon went over to take a look over the damaged craft. 

"What's that other gun you kept?" 

"Oh, this? It's a Zero-Point Energy Field Manipulator. You can call it a gravity gun." He pointed it a nearby rock and gave a demonstration by making it float in the air. 

Shepard's eyes widened a bit. "Oh, I see, it generates mass effect fields. That's kind of neat." 

" _Kind_ of? Check this out!" Gordon pressed a button to send the hovering rock shooting away down the hillside at high speeds. 

"Not bad. It's just pretty much what my guns already do, on a larger scale." 

"Ah, come on, Shepard, this thing is awesome!" 

Shepard smirked. "You see what you can do with the fish. I'll scout around the area for anything useful the bugs left behind and shoot any that might still be alive." 

"Alright, alright," Gordon said, rolling his eyes and turning back to the aircraft. 

The replicators had done some damage to the craft, gnawing some chunks out of it, but at least they hadn't gotten to their supplies yet. Still, he had to wonder if he could make the thing airworthy again, especially considering that he wasn't entirely certain how it worked in the first place. He wasn't sure if this amount of damage was even enough to prevent it from flying. 

Behind him, he heard a humming sound, and turned to see Shepard juggling rocks with the gravity gun. 

"Shepard, what are you doing?" 

"I'm... uh... testing the Zero-Point Energy Field Manipulator." 

"You're playing with the gravity gun," Gordon said, smirking. He could certainly understand that. 

Shepard paused, and reluctantly said, "Maybe." She put the gravity gun down next to him again sheepishly. 

"Why don't you see about hunting down something to eat?" Gordon suggested. "These supplies won't last forever." 

"Hunting? Oh, alright, I can do that." 

Gordon turned his attention back to the fish craft. He got inside and tried to activate it. It hummed for a moment and sputtered a bit, but wouldn't budge. Something was definitely damaged here. He went back into the building to see if there might be something he could scavenge that would help. 

Something scuttled out from under a bit of rubble, and he slammed into it with his crowbar in one motion. These damned replicators were certainly persistent. And it looked like the blocks kept trying to reform themselves, too. What an infestation. This was worse than headcrabs. 

When he came back outside, Shepard was poking at some bloody chunks and trying to start a fire. 

"What's that?" Gordon asked. 

"A rabbit." 

"What did you do to that poor rabbit?" 

"I shot it with a sniper rifle." 

Gordon stared at her. "You shot a rabbit with a sniper rifle?" 

"There wasn't much left of it afterward, though." 

"Why are you hunting for meat with a sniper rifle?" 

Shepard looked at him oddly. "What else would I use?" 

"At least go after bigger prey, or use something that doesn't blow the rabbits into bite-sized bits." 

"Well, I've never shot at anything I intended to _eat_ before," Shepard said, snorting softly. "But I know about killing things good." 

"Same here, but even I can figure out that blowing up the meat probably isn't the best way to do it. And man, seriously, how powerful is that sniper rifle of yours?" 

"It's Spectre grade," Shepard replied, patting the gun affectionately. "And it cost me a small mound of credits." She looked over at the aircraft critically. "So, can you fix the fish?" 

"I don't know," Gordon admitted. 

"Well, I don't really care to walk to the next outpost, especially considering that I have no idea where it might even be. Although I thought I saw a settlement of some Stone Age looking folks nearby. They might know, I suppose, provided we can even get through to them." 

"Or we could just get a ride on that," Gordon said, pointing at the sky. A much larger version of the fish-shaped craft was approaching, and coming in for a landing a little ways off down in the valley below. 

"Huh," Shepard said, staring at it. "Well, okay." 

A group of five people climbed out of the airship and approached them. One was a woman who looked like one of the natives, one looked like a short and bearded man, one was a blue woman with horns and hooves, one was a teenage boy with goat's horns and a tail. An eclectic group, all in all. 

"Commander Shepard?" said the native woman. "I'm Serriya. Do you and your companion need a lift?" 

"An airship, huh?" Shepard said. "I hereby dub it the S.S. Deus Ex Machina." 

"Deus Ex Machina?" Serriya repeated in confusion. 

"Would you prefer the H.M.S. Contrived Coincidence?" 

"Why don't we just get our stuff on board and not complain?" Gordon said.


	7. Gone to the Wolves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter involves Werewolf: The Apocalypse.

Serriya poked at her food and ate absently, for the most part lost in her own thoughts. 

"Have you considered remodulating the crystal conduits in order to achieve a more balanced energy differential?" 

And she tried to ignore the two scientists talking behind her. Gordon Freeman had latched onto Pandora from the moment he arrived, or perhaps it was the other way around, and they had been discussing things she could not understand ever since. 

Serriya could not deny that their latest additions to the crew were most definitely not barbarians. Gordon seemed to know more about portal technology than Pandora herself did. And the other one, Megan Shepard, she had little doubt was a competent warrior. Serriya could not shake the feeling of guilt of thinking she had been judging people too harshly. 

"I can't understand half of what they're saying," Scregor said, plopping down across from Serriya. "Better chance of figuring out what the tiefling is on about." 

"I'm feeling more confident in our chances of success, whether or not we find a functional portal," Serriya said. "Are you looking forward to the prospect of going home?" 

The dwarf snorted softly. "I'm looking forward to the prospect of seeing what other worlds might be like." 

"Yeah..." Serriya said a little dreamily, staring off. "I've been all over this world, and seen many things, and after meeting you guys, I feel like I've only scratched the surface." She sighed. "And it's not like there's anything else left in this world for me." 

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry about your city." 

Serriya shook her head. "What can you say when your best is still not enough?" 

"You couldn't have predicted what would happen. In my world, the ancient elven realm of Arlathan was brought down by the Tevinter Imperium. Then Tevinter itself fell. The dwarven realm was torn apart by darkspawn, leaving only two cities intact with no contact with one another for ages. So far as we know, it was the Tevinters and not the dwarves who were responsible for the coming of the darkspawn, but we were the ones who felt the brunt of their onslaught. What could we have done? But we held on to what we could, and left behind what we could not." 

"All I have to hold onto now is Pandora," Serriya said. "And some unexpected new friends." 

Scregor grinned at her. "Life's full of surprises, isn't it? And not all of them are bad, either." 

So many dead. But they were still alive. These few. There was still hope for some sort of future. Somehow, somewhere. 

* * *

"Shepard, I think we're actually in the past." 

Shepard looked up at Dr. Freeman. What mad theory was the physicist on about now? "How do you figure?" 

Dr. Freeman sat down across from her. "Well, we're the only two here with a frame of reference I can really use. And what year was it that were you from?" 

"2183," Shepard replied. 

Freeman nodded. "We're not even from the same time ourselves. The year I was from was over a century before then." Shepard opened her mouth to protest, but Gordon held up his hand. "And don't even start on telling me that time travel isn't possible, either." 

"Alright, alright," Shepard said reluctantly. "So it's pretty obvious that at least one of us is apparently not in our own time. What makes you think we're in the past, though?" 

"Have you heard these people talk about where they're from? Pandora is an Atlantean scientist! Could this have been the basis of all our myths?" 

"It could just be coincidence. It might not mean anything," Shepard said, shrugging. 

Dr. Freeman snorted in irritation. "Coincidence? How about this? Serriya found a map of the world as known by the Atlanteans. It's Earth, Shepard. It _is_ Earth. And you said yourself how pristine the world was..." 

Shepard blinked at him. "Alright, maybe you have a point." She frowned deeply at the implications. "So, about how far in the past are we? If this was really Atlantis, it must be something like ten thousand years ago!" 

Dr. Freeman nodded. "And from their descriptions, these so-called barbarians sound like they're at a paleolithic or mesolithic stage." At Shepard's blank look, he amended, "Stone Age." 

"I knew that," Shepard insisted. "Hmm, so, if we're in the past, we might actually have a few thousand years to figure out how to deal with and prepare for the Reapers..." 

"The Reapers?" 

"They were these giant machine monstrosities that came around every fifty thousand years to wipe out all advanced cultures." 

"They might not even exist in this timeline." 

"Nonsense," Shepard said. "If we're actually in the past, they should still be here somewhere. They've been around for at least fifty thousand years, after all." 

"They might be. But they might not, also. As a counterpart to the butterfly effect, there's also the concept of parallel universes. Cases in which, despite differences in the past, the development of the universe still progressed almost identically." 

"That doesn't even make any sense," Shepard protested. "If the Reapers hadn't existed, the Protheans wouldn't have been wiped out, and would still be in control of the galaxy." 

"Provided that they ever existed at all in this timeline." 

Shepard rubbed her head. "Maybe you should take this up with Pandora instead." 

"I did," Dr. Freeman said. "She didn't quite grip the potential here, though. Somehow, she stumbled upon a way to access alternate universes, not just straight time travel. Because it's pretty clear that _you_ aren't from the future of _my_ universe." 

"What _is_ the potential here?" 

"Think about it. If we can duplicate the effect, we could go anywhere, anytime, to any universe that could ever possibly exist! This is incredible! This isn't just the discovery of a lifetime, this is the discovery of _all time_!" 

"That's big, alright. Too big. My brain hurts just thinking about it." 

* * *

Serriya finally brought the Ar'ketak down at a spot where they hoped that there would be an intact portal this time. The last several had been no luck. But Gordon and Pandora were confident that they could build another one with a few more pieces. Having an intact one at this point would just be a bonus. 

"We must be cautious," Serriya said to her group. "We can't be certain what happened here. There might still have been monsters or something else dangerous. Nabek, Tirosh, stay with the ship and guard the civilians." 

She gathered up her team of Faruni, Scregor Aeducan, Zerek, and Megan Shepard. Then she noticed Gordon Freeman coming out to join them, bearing multiple guns, including one Atlantean one. 

"Gordon? What are you doing?" Serriya asked. 

"What does it look like? I'm coming with you." 

"You're a scientist." 

"That doesn't mean I can't fight," Gordon protested. 

"He certainly can," Megan agreed. 

Serriya grunted. "Well, you can help to protect the ship, then." 

"You might need me to examine the equipment," Gordon said. 

Serriya didn't really care to argue about it. "Fine, come along if you want, but don't you dare get yourself killed." 

As the six of them cautiously approached the outpost, large white-furred creatures could be seen in the forest. One of the monsters attacked the party, and the group laid into it with weapons. Megan's and Gordon's projectile weapons were not as effective as could be hoped against it, nor were Scregor's, Zerek's, or Faruni's blades. Energy weapons and Faruni's holy magic, however, proved to be sufficient to bring it down. 

"A werewolf?" Scregor said, looking at the corpse. "But it was regenerating any wounds I inflicted upon it quite rapidly." 

"It reminds me of the worgen I've seen back on Azeroth," Faruni commented. 

"Werewolves?" Megan said. "Well, at this point, I'll believe anything." 

"Time to swap weapons, I think," Gordon said, pulling out the Atlantean beam pistol. 

"Anyone have any extras of those on hand?" Megan asked. 

"Not on me," Serriya replied. "We aren't too far from the Ar'ketak. We've got several spare ones there." 

They turned back and returned to the ship. They'd collected some extra beam weapons from fallen soldiers. Serriya handed beam pistols to Megan, Zerek, and Scregor. 

Faruni declined to take one. "The powers of the Light seem to be most effective against them." 

"How do you work this thing?" Zerek wondered. 

Scregor's weapon fired off wildly, scoring a mark on a bulkhead. "Oops." 

"I'll show you outside," Serriya said, sighing. 

At least _Megan_ wasn't a barbarian who didn't know how to work a gun. Serriya directed them to point their weapons away from anything important and demonstrated how to use the trigger. 

"Remember, don't point these weapons at anything you don't want to kill," Serriya said. "And unless you can be absolutely sure of what you're going to hit, don't shoot if there's even the possibility of hitting a teammate. These aren't bows and arrows that you can yank the arrow out and just magically heal. These weapons could _kill_ a person before Faruni could direct her healing powers at someone. Any unfortunate accidents and I'll have you thrown off the ship. From the air." 

"Understood," Scregor said. 

"Yeah, yeah, I get it," Zerek said, firing his pistol at a tree and grinning broadly. Serriya pinned him with a glare for a moment before turning and leading the way back toward the outpost. That was all the warning she was going to give him. If he decided to be irresponsible and she discovered that he could not be trusted, she would not hesitate to show him no mercy. 

The group encountered another white-furred werewolf a bit closer to the outpost. Although Zerek and Scregor could certainly use more practice with the beam pistols, they were able to bring it down more readily this time. 

"They are clearly evil, tainted creatures," Faruni said. 

"Yeah, for sure," Zerek drawled. 

Outside of the outpost building itself, no less than four of the creatures were flanking the doorway, as if guarding it. Serriya stopped them at the edge of the trees, before the werewolves noticed that they were present. 

"Not all completely mindless, it seems," Faruni said. 

"Why would you think they were mindless?" Scregor wondered. 

"Assume nothing," Gordon said. "These are probably not the creatures you are familiar with. Anything could be true regarding them." 

"What's most obviously true is that, regardless of whether they retain their minds or not, they are still evil," Faruni said. "I can feel the taint of darkness emanating from deep within their very souls." 

"Do you now?" Zerek said, raising an eyebrow. 

"If they're not mindless monsters, then perhaps we can speak with them." Serriya could hardly believe that _she_ was the one even suggesting such a thing this time. Usually, it was Faruni making that attempt. 

"I will not," Faruni said. "They might not be demons, but whatever their appearance, they do not seem to be far off from being demonic in nature." 

"Do you think I'm a demon, too?" Zerek asked. 

"Of course not," Faruni replied. "There is nothing evil within you that you chose to bring upon yourself." 

Zerek blinked at her in surprise. "You mean you can _tell_?" 

"I will not judge you by whatever was forced upon you against your will, by whatever means," Faruni said. "These monsters here? They chose their darkness. It's far too extensive to have been otherwise. They had to have embraced it with their hearts." 

"I have no idea how you can even tell that, Faruni," Serriya said. "But this is pointless. It's not our duty to cleanse the world of all evil, nor would that even be possible. We just need to find out, first and foremost, if the portal ring is still intact." 

"I'll beg to differ on that purpose, but I will acknowledge that priority for the moment," Faruni said reluctantly. "I will still not speak with these creatures, however." 

"Oh, fine," Megan said impatiently. "Step aside. I'll talk to them." Megan stepped forward and boldly approached the four werewolves. "Excuse me. Can I speak with you for a moment, please?" 

The werewolves growled and hunched down into aggressive postures, as if about to attack her. Serriya didn't let down her guard, and kept her gun trained on the monsters, ready in case anything went wrong here. 

"I wish to speak with your leader," Megan said. 

The werewolves looked from side to side dubiously for a moment, before one of them said, "Why?" 

"So you _can_ speak, after all," Megan said. "I was starting to wonder." 

Perhaps not the most diplomatic way of putting it, Serriya thought. 

"What do you want, woman?" 

"I just want to know if the portal ring in this building is still intact or not," Megan said. 

"And why should we tell you?" 

"Because if you don't, my friends and I are going to kill you." 

Definitely not the most diplomatic way of putting it. The werewolves growled low, glancing over to where Serriya and the others were waiting at the edge of the trees. 

"If you're looking for a fight, then you've found it. The Black Spiral Dancers do not bend to empty threats!" 

The werewolves charged at Megan, who turned and darted back off toward the trees as Serriya and the others took their cue to open fire. One creature managed to grab Megan by the leg, causing her to stumble and fall on her face. If she hadn't been wearing armor, she would have been severely mauled by the monster's nasty claws. 

Serriya stepped forward and thrust her lightblade into the skull of the werewolf attacking Megan. "Lay off, you mangy cur!" 

Megan rolled over and fired a couple of shots at the next creature pursuing her. Gordon was at her other side in a moment, firing his own weapon as well. 

Finally, with three of the werewolves brought down, the final one yelped in pain as a beam struck it in the paw, and scrambled into the building. 

Gordon helped Megan to her feet. "Megan, are you alright?" 

"I'm fine. And it's Megan now? Not Shepard?" 

"Sorry, if that's too familiar--" 

Megan snorted. "I spent months trying to get my friends to call me by my first name. And even the ones I'd had sex with kept calling me Shepard most of the time." 

"You--" Gordon began. "Ah, never mind..." 

"How many do you suppose are inside?" Scregor asked. 

"No clue," Serriya said. "And Megan, you call that diplomacy? I could have done as much myself!" 

"Sorry," Megan said, smirking and clearly not the least bit ashamed of herself. "It sometimes works?" 

"Oy, berk, all you did was pike the furballs off good," Zerek said. 

"Let us enter the building and finish off these monsters," Faruni said. 

"Before they regroup," Scregor said, approaching the door, and the others moved to follow him. 

Inside the outpost, there were several more werewolves, as well as a human man sitting almost casually at the far end of the room in front of the shattered portal. The werewolves didn't immediately attack them, and the man held up his hand. 

"Hold. I will parley with you." 

"You may look like a man, but you are no less corrupted than these other monsters here," Faruni said, narrowing her eyes at him. 

Serriya snorted softly at her and stepped forward. "I will speak with you." It was pretty clear that the portal was not intact after all, but with some luck, maybe she could talk her way out of a fight, or even convince him to hand over the fragments of the portal ring. 

"I am Kar'ghren of the Black Spiral Dancers. Who are you?" 

"Serriya of Atlantis." 

"I take it you are of the same race of people as those who formerly owned this outpost?" 

"I am," Serriya said. There weren't any signs of bodies in here, but she could guess that the werewolves killed them. 

Kar'ghren grinned toothily at her. "So, have you come to avenge them?" 

"No," Serriya said with forced patience. 

"Interesting," Kar'ghren replied. "I'm told you were asking about the portal?" 

"It's broken, I see," Serriya said. 

"It exploded about an hour after I arrived here." 

"All I'm interested in here are the fragments of the portal ring," Serriya said. 

"And what would you give me for them?" Kar'ghren asked. 

"You aren't getting any of _my_ jink," Zerek muttered. 

"What would you ask?" Serriya said evenly. 

Her eyes flicked around the room, appraising his forces. There were five werewolves visible in this room, and there might be more of them in the other rooms in the outpost. Fighting them would be dangerous, but not impossible. But she didn't want to lose anyone else. She wanted to avoid a fight if she could feasably do so. 

"Perhaps a trade," Kar'ghren said. "The portal fragments you want so badly, in exchange for one of your females." He grinned at Faruni. "I'm particularly fond of the blue one. I would so enjoy breaking her. She'd make a fine addition to the other females." 

"What?" Faruni snarled. "I'm not some prize to be bought, foul creature!" 

Rage boiled up within Serriya, and she lifted her lightblade. "Alright, you die now." 

No matter how dangerous it was, however, there were some things that she just could not abide by. And the thought of her compatriots being held prisoner for the pleasure of these _monsters_... 

"Crinos form for you, then," Kar'ghren said. He stood, and his body shifted, grew larger and more muscular, white fur sprouting as his face changed to a muzzle. 

While her companions dealt with the other werewolves, Serriya leapt at their leader, lightblade shining purple against his ragged white bulk. She barely nicked him with her blade on her first attack, and a massive paw knocked her out of the way, slamming her into the nearest wall. Serriya grunted in pain and almost dropped her lightblade. She didn't think anything was broken, though. 

"You have spirit," Kar'ghren growled. "I think I'll take you for my own." 

"Like hell you will!" Serriya screamed, spinning around and clipping him with the tip of her lightblade. 

Kar'ghren roared in pain, but that didn't slow him down for a moment. Serriya pressed in, tumbling forward and nearly taking off a paw with her next swipe. The werewolf stumbled and almost fell. Serriya took advantage of taking him off-balance, and swept her lightblade at his side. The violet energy seared right into him, burning him severely and cutting deeply. 

"You will pay for this, woman," Kar'ghren snarled. He spun around faster than she thought he was capable of at the moment, grabbing her by the upper arm with one massive paw, claws biting into her armor. 

Serriya squirmed and swapped hands. She couldn't fight left-handed quite as well, but she couldn't even move her right arm at the moment. With as much strength as she could muster, she slashed into the wrist of the hand that was holding her. It burned his flesh, but didn't cut through nearly as deeply as she'd hoped. She just didn't have the raw physical strength to press the energy blade through like this, although at least she could hurt him with it. She needed to strike at a weak point. 

Kar'ghren tried to grab onto her free arm with his other paw, but she squirmed around and very nearly wormed her way out of his grasp if it weren't for his claws sinking in and prickling at her flesh beneath her armor. As he lifted her up into the air, she saw her opportunity. With as fierce a thrust as she could manage, she plunged her lightblade into his eye, forcing it through as far as she could shove it in. 

The werewolf shrieked and released her from his grip, trying to push her away for a brief moment before collapsing to the ground, twitching a little. Serriya pulled out her blade and stepped on top of him, hacking at his head a few more times to make sure he was really dead. 

Serriya straightened and looked around the room, ignoring the pain in her right arm for the moment. The others were doing well enough with their own fights. No one was on the ground unmoving, at least. She went over to Zerek to help him out. As she did, Faruni apparently noticed that she was wounded, and directed a healing spell over toward her. 

Once all the werewolves were dead, Serriya did a search of the building and found three Atlantean women chained up naked in a back room. She growled in rage anew when she saw them, and used her lightblade to cut them free. 

"Thank the gods you came." 

"By the naaru," Faruni breathed. "Are you alright? Is anyone hurt?" 

"Nifa could use some healing," said the middle woman, tilting her head toward the one on the left. 

Nifa looked away, trying to cover herself with her hands. Leaving Faruni to tend to them, Serriya looked around for some clothes to give them that were in wearable condition. Gordon was collecting the fragments of the portal ring to take back to the Ar'ketak. With some clothing in hand, Serriya returned to the back room to get them dressed. 

"I'm so glad that someone came for us. I can't believe this all has happened. These monsters came out of the portal, and they _ate_ the men! We've been locked away in here and cut off from everything. What's been happening elsewhere? What's going on in Atlantis?" 

Serriya sighed. These were the first survivors of her people that she'd come across so far, and she wished that she had better news to tell them. What was she to say? That this was all an unmitigated disaster of cataclysmic proportions? That their race was dead overnight? 

"We have an Ar'ketak nearby," Serriya said, not wanting to answer the question for the moment. "We've been working our way from outpost to outpost and checking in on them. We've fought off several enemies, and picked up a few friends along the way as well." She nodded to Faruni. "Let's get you back to the ship. I imagine that you don't want to stay here..." 

"You've got that right. I'm going to be having nightmares about this place for months." 

* * *

Back aboard the ship, once they were on the move again, Zerek sheepishly approached Faruni. He'd been a bit nervous about her ever since her surprising comments back at the last outpost. 

"Hello, Zerek," Faruni said. "Come, sit with me, if you like." 

Zerek sat down to eat with her, putting his back firmly pointed at the wall as was his habit. It wasn't like he was really afraid that anyone on the ship would attack him. But he always liked to be aware of everything that was going on around him. 

"So... um... you can tell that my da was a fiend?" Zerek asked hesitantly. 

"Is that it?" Faruni said. "I knew there was something about you, but I could not pinpoint what. The extent was too small for me to be overly concerned about, however. From your appearance, I guessed at a possibility of demonic parentage." 

"He was a devil, actually, not a demon." 

Faruni sighed. "I am never going to understand the distinction that your world seems to make. Are they not both evil?" 

"Oh, they are," Zerek said. "But they _hate_ each other, and will get really piked off if you confuse one for the other." 

"I see. Why do they hate one another so much?" 

"I don't know, but they've been fighting the Blood War down in the Lower Planes for longer than anyone can remember. It's quite the mess, and they keep hauling in bashers to fight for them, by any means they can." 

"Perhaps it's fortunate that they have," Faruni said. "I would imagine that they would be a far greater threat to the universe if they formed a united front, like the Burning Legion." 

Zerek went over to see Serriya after he finished eating. "I haven't really been having good luck with the blaster you gave me. I don't suppose you've got any extras of those glowy swords you use laying around?" 

"That's even more dangerous than the beam pistols," Serriya said. "You could easily cut your own hand off, or worse, with a lightblade if you aren't trained and careful about it." 

Zerek snorted. "What kind of a basher do you take me for? I know how to use a chiv without nicking myself with it." 

"It's not just like a metal sword or dagger. For one thing, a lightblade has no weight in the blade itself. The balance is completely different from using a barbarian weapon." 

"So, I take it you have one, but you're rattling your bone-box trying to talk me out of using it? Look, I'll take my chances. If I have to, I'll go find it and try it out myself." 

Serriya sighed and rolled her eyes. "Oh, fine. If you're so set on it, then I'll get one for you and show you how to use it. You can practice with it on a low setting where you won't actually hurt anything." 

Zerek grinned. He knew he could get through to her one way or another. "Great!"


End file.
